Description
The Nain Rouge is a small red goblin-like spirit from the folklore of Detroit, Michigan that appears before disasters affecting the city. He is described as being small and red-skinned with sharp teeth, glowing eyes, bat-like ears, and clawed hands.
Behavior
The Nain Rouge is said to be a malevolent, mischievous, and often maleficent creature who is believed to bring extreme bad luck and misfortune to the city of Detroit and its residents.
First Sighting
According to legend, the Nain Rouge was first spotted in Detroit in 1701 by Antoine Laumet de La Mothe, sieur de Cadillac, who founded the city. Cadillac was told by a fortune teller that one day he would cross paths with a tiny red troublemaker. The fortune teller warned him not to mess with the Nain Rouge, however Cadillac unfortunately ignored this advice. Soon after, Cadillac encountered the Nain Rouge near the banks of the Detroit River while out for an evening stroll. He proceeded to hit the Nain Rouge with his cane and told him to get out of his way.
Sure enough bad times followed for Cadillac. He was charged by the high officials of New France with abuse of power and was reassigned to a backwoods outpost in Louisiana. He later returned to France where he was briefly imprisoned and eventually lost his fortune.
Since that encounter with Cadillac, Nain Rouge’s appearance would always mean terrible events for the city. The creature is said to have appeared on July 30, 1763, right before the Battle of Bloody Run where 58 British soldiers stationed at Fort Detroit were slaughtered by Native Americans from Chief Pontiac’s Ottawa tribe. Governor William Hull’s misfortunes leading to the surrender of Detroit to the British in the War of 1812 are blamed on the Nain Rouge. The Great Fire of 1805, the race riots in 1967, Detroit’s economic crash in the 1970’s, the decline of the auto industry, poverty and continuing social issues, crime waves, and even the losing seasons of the Detroit Lions and Detroit Tigers have also been attributed to the Nain Rouge’s curse.