Nain Rouge
|
|
The Nain Rouge, French for red dwarf or red gnome, is a mythical creature that haunts Detroit, Michigan. Its appearance is said to presage terrible events for the city. The Nain Rouge appears as a small child-like creature with red or black fur. It is also said to have "blazing red eyes and rotten teeth."
The creature is said to have been attacked in 1701 by the first white settler of Detroit, Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac, who soon after lost his fortune. The creature is also said to have appeared in 1763 before the Battle of Bloody Run where 59 British soldiers were killed by Chief Pontiac's Indians.
Famous multiple sighting occurred in the days before the 1805 fire which destroyed most of Detroit. Gen William Hull reported a "dwarf attack" in the fog just before his surrender of Detroit in the War of 1812.
A woman claimed to have been attacked in 1884, and described the creature as resembling, "a baboon with a horned head...brilliant restless eyes and a devilish leer on its face." Another attack was reported in 1964.
Other sightings include the day before the 12th Street Riot in 1967 and before a huge snow/ice storm of March 1976, when two utility workers are said to have seen what they thought was a child climbing a utility pole which then jumped from the top of the pole and ran away as they approached.
The Nain Rouge is the archnemesis of Pierre Livernois, the Spirit of Detroit. Livernois has been seen working to repair the damage inflicted by the Nain Rouge.