Jay's plan to use beam pockets in the front wall will work fine. Dbl. top plates with no additional structure supporting a roof over a SIX foot span (as per Tester101's first suggestion) is entirely inadequate. Whether a 2x beam on edge is adequate, and how deep it is, depends on what the roof snowload is, if any.
There are also hardware beam hangers available that support the end of the beam and are nailed or bolted to the supporting studs in the front wall, eliminating the need to frame pockets. Tester101's second suggestion to use a ledger to support the beam end is a viable idea, but the connection of the ledger under the beam, into the studs needs to be carefully detailed.
A metal plate tying the two walls together is an important detail. Alternately, extend the dbl. top plates over the beam, lowering the beam 3" so the plates can still lap in a conventional manner. If you go with a hardware hanger or a ledger, the beam should be strapped to the sidewall top plate to hold it to the main structure in a wind storm or possibly an earthquake.
Along wind storm lines, be sure the beam is well connected to the outer post, and the post tied into the foundation, as there can be significant uplift forces on an open porch roof.
I called an engineer and paid for his evaluation of the wall. It's not load bearing. Realized that I left out some basics about the house.
This house is built on a raised foundation with cripple walls attaching the floor joists to the foundation. The metal post is attached to the fireplace foundation (which is independent of the houses foundation). There is no foundation (just 3 feet of empty air) underneath the wall I want to remove. The header is just oddly sized.
The header does not connect to the beam.
From a sheer wall perspective he was not too concerned, given that the total amount of wall I want to remove is pretty minimal compared to the rest of the house.
Best Answer
Are these wall studs for your first floor?
If so then you need a proper header above the door and double up or triple the 2x6 studs on the outside of the door to support the header. The header should have 3 boards to accommodate the wall thickness. A 2x6 header is probably sufficient but I would go for 2x8 or 2x10 if it doesn't impede head clearance. Better to over-engineer than to under-engineer. Speaking of engineer, you may wish to consult with one.
It's looking more and more like a load-bearing wall. I don't think they double up the top plate for the fun of it when building a cosmetic wall.