Adriana Porter (July 1857 – March 1, 1946) was an alleged

witch Witchcraft traditionally means the use of Magic (supernatural), magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In Middle Ages, medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually ...

. She was born in

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

, Canada, and died in

Melrose, Massachusetts Melrose is a city located in the Greater Boston metropolitan area in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. Its population, per the 2020 United States Census, is 29,817. It is a suburb located approximately seven miles north of Boston. I ...

, United States. Porter's notability rests on a poem, '' The Rede of the Wiccae'', which was published by her granddaughter

Lady Gwen Thompson Lady Gwen Thompson (September 16, 1928 – May 22, 1986) was the pseudonym of Phyllis Thompson, author and teacher of traditionalist initiatory witchcraft through her own organisation, the New England Covens of Traditionalist Witches. Lady ...

in ''

Green Egg ''Green Egg'' is a Neopagan magazine published by the Church of All Worlds intermittently since 1968. The ''Encyclopedia of American Religions'' described it as a significant periodical. First version, 1968–1976 ''Green Egg'' was created by O ...

'' magazine in 1975 and attributed to her. It has become a semi-sacred text within the culture of

Wicca Wicca () is a modern Pagan religion. Scholars of religion categorise it as both a new religious movement and as part of the occultist stream of Western esotericism. It was developed in England during the first half of the 20th century and was ...

. Thompson claimed that she had inherited her Wiccan beliefs and practices from Porter, who had summarized them in the poem. If this were true, it would confirm that the hidden practices of witchcraft articulated by

Gerald Gardner Gerald Brosseau Gardner (13 June 1884 – 12 February 1964), also known by the craft name Scire, was an English Wiccan, as well as an author and an amateur anthropologist and archaeologist. He was instrumental in bringing the Contemporary Pag ...

in his books existed in independent traditions, uninfluenced by his writings. The true authorship of the poem is, however, disputed. Some evidence suggests that it dates from several decades after Porter's death.

Sources

* * Bott, Adrian, "The Wiccan Rede", ''White Dragon'' magazine, Lughnasadh 2003 1857 births 1946 deaths 20th-century Canadian poets 20th-century Canadian women writers Canadian emigrants to the United States People from Melrose, Massachusetts Canadian women poets Writers from Nova Scotia {{Canada-poet-stub