 Davenport was educated in the public schools of Plymouth, attended Wyoming Seminary and graduated in 1884 from Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut, earning a Bachelor of Arts.After completing college, Davenport was associated in business for two years with his brother, Andrew L. Davenport, who owned a book store on Main Street in Plymouth, after which he studied law under the tutelage of the Honorable George Washington Shonk, a cousin.In 1890, Davenport was admitted to the Luzerne County Bar, and in 1891 he commenced the practice of law.