Nain Rouge
A red dwarf whose appearance warns of disaster for Detroit's white settlers.
The Nain Rouge, or "red dwarf," is a Detroit legend said to signal bad luck for the area's white settlers. Also called the Demon of the Strait, it appears in modern city culture through a spring chase and burning, themed drinks, and a film.
Quick Facts
- Associated historical events
- Battle of Bloody Run (1763)
- surrender of Detroit in War of 1812
- 1967 Detroit riots
- 1976 ice storm
Facts from the source article.
Legend
The Nain Rouge first appeared in Marie Caroline Watson Hamlin's 1883 book Legends of Le Détroit, where it was described as a dwarf with a very red face, a bright glistening eye, and a grinning mouth displaying sharp pointed teeth. Charles M. Skinner's 1896 book Myths And Legends Of Our Own Land similarly described it as a shambling red-faced creature with a cold glittering eye and protruding teeth. According to legend, the Nain Rouge's appearance would presage terrible events for the white people of the city and foretell success for Indigenous People. It is said to have appeared on July 30, 1763 before the Battle of Bloody Run, where 58 British soldiers were killed by Native Americans from Chief Pontiac's Ottawa tribe; after the battle, the creature supposedly danced among the corpses on the banks of the Detroit River, and the river turned red with blood for days. The misfortunes of Governor and General William Hull leading to the surrender of Detroit in the War of 1812 are also blamed on the Nain Rouge. Several 20th-century sightings were reported, including by two utility workers just before the 1967 Detroit riots and before an ice storm in 1976. No records indicate the legend existed in the 18th century when Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac was in authority; the earliest record is from 1883, 180 years after Cadillac was said to have been cursed. Some claim the Nain Rouge originates from early 1700s French settlement of Detroit, deriving from Norman French tales of the lutin, a hobgoblin, while others claim it originated with supposed Native American legends of an impish offspring of the Stone God. Wellesley College assistant professor Kate Grandjean, a specialist in early American and Native American history, has stated that the Nain Rouge likely has both French and Native traditions wrapped up in it, and that historically it has mostly been a menace to those in power.
Local culture
The Nain Rouge legend has become an enduring part of Detroit area folklore. Each spring, hundreds of people attend the Marche du Nain Rouge, where a person dressed as the Nain Rouge is chased out of the city and then burned in effigy. Critics have protested the banishment parade, arguing that the Nain Rouge is unfairly blamed for the city's problems and that no one should be banished from the city, particularly those who have been there the longest and who are being targeted based on skin color. One protester stated that originally the Nain Rouge was a Native American Earth spirit and protector of Detroit that was turned into a devil. The 2014 parade included a speech from Alexis Wiley, a representative for Mayor Mike Duggan, the first white mayor of the majority-black city since the early 1970s. According to Hamlin's Legends of Le Détroit, the Nain Rouge's curse on Cadillac was partly a response to Cadillac's selling of alcohol to local Native Americans; in that telling, a fortune teller warns Cadillac that selling liquor to the savages will cause him trouble and be his ruin. Several contemporary businesses sell alcoholic drinks based on the legend, including Detroit Beer Company's 'Detroit Dwarf' lager, Two James Spirits' 120 proof Absinthe du Nain Rouge, and Woodberry Wine and Kindred Vines Import Company's 'Nain Rouge Red' French red wine blend. The 2019 film Devil's Night: Dawn of the Nain Rouge, directed by Sam Logan Khaleghi and featuring Nathan Kane Mathers and Swifty McVay, depicts the Nain Rouge as a ruthless guardian angel who can be summoned by whoever holds an ancient Ottawa Indian tribe knife stolen from a museum.
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