Comments on: Nain Rouge: The Red Gnome

By: dspitzle

dspitzle — Sun, 06 Feb 2011 02:36:38 +0000

I am stunned and touched to learn that the estimable Loren Coleman has turned his eye to The Straits. I can attest that the Nain Rouge is a historical phenomenon, but it would be an overstatement to suggest that it has the city quaking in its boots. The fact is that Detroit has amnesia; it’s a land of giants, but nobody notices them standing there as the cars travel between their feet. In any case, last year saw a group called the March de la Nain Rouge (look for them on Facebook) organize what was hypothetically a revival of a 19th century celebration where the Nain was burnt in effigy. Personally, I read the Nain as a Genius Loci, so I think this is a bad idea, but hey, at least they’re paying attention to the poor beastie, even if it smells of Gardnerian mythspinning. At the risk of being gauche, I’ll just point people to my Mythic Detroit webpage (just Google the name), where I’ve gathered what I can about Detroit’s forgotten majesties. I’m moving it to a wiki format, so hopefully the project will expand in the near future.

By: wisaaka

wisaaka — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 10:34:44 +0000

This sounds very much like the Pukwudgies. It is very much like the phenomenon reported here in New England.
Also stories from Africa and other places feature a dwarf like creature coming around when there is crisis and catastrophy. These same attributes are given to Indrid Cold otherwise, perhaps, known in the mid-west (well at least 100 years ago) as a Boger-man. When there is death and/or destruction they come out a’calling.
It seems to me, if there is any truth to this sort of thing, then it is closely linked to the human psyche. I would venture that “they” are ‘thought forms’ put forth by an individual or a group or a combination of natural precogniton (not produced by humans) and an interface of human precognition.

By: CalebKitson

CalebKitson — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 02:10:10 +0000

“You are invisible when you like it; you cross in one moment the vast space of the universe; you rise without having wings; you go through the ground without dying; you penetrate the abysses of the sea without drowning; you enter everywhere, though the windows and the doors are closed; and, when you decide to, you can let yourself be seen in your natural form.”

Any average guy on an acid trip can do this too!

I have lived in Michigan my whole life and never heard of Nain Rouge, but I will grant that I have only been in Detroit twice, and that was at the Airport.

If he shows up before bad things happen, shouldn’t he be popping up all over the city??

By: mystery_man

mystery_man — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 22:47:21 +0000

Cliffhanger- Yeah, 1973 IS the year I was born. It wasn’t until much later I stumbled across the movie. I won’t spoil it for you, but the ending is incredibly creepy. I recommend it, but expect to get at least one horrible nightmare out of the deal.

By: cryptogirl

cryptogirl — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 17:34:10 +0000

I'm originally from the Detroit area, and the Nain Rouge is certainly part of the local folklore. Colonial Detroit also hosted a resident loup garou - or, werewolf. Check out this excellent book (published 1883!) for more on these, and other, Detroit legends.

By: tomagi

tomagi — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 16:23:44 +0000

Some follow-up. If you replace "Elmwood Cemetery" with "Woodmere Cemetery," then you have a perfect fit for the Rouge River as the tributary of the Detroit River mentioned above. Interesting links for additional info, here. And relative to events leading up to the river area and the 1967 riots, here.

By: cliffhanger042002

cliffhanger042002 — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 14:51:42 +0000

I just looked up that movie, Don’t Look Now. I wondered why I hadn’t heard of it or seen it before, then I saw it was released in 1973, lol. So now I realize why I hadn’t seen it. It was released 2 years before I was born. But I put it on my queue and will check it out though, since it sounds interesting.

By: mystery_man

mystery_man — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 12:22:45 +0000

Loren – The film Don’t Look Now, with Donald Sutherland, has one of the most genuinely disturbing endings to a movie that I have ever seen, and fits in well with the tale of this Nain Rouge thing.

By: Insanity

Insanity — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 02:36:32 +0000

I grew up in Troy, MI, not too far from Detroit and I do not recall ever hearing about this.

By: Lonewolf 9390

Lonewolf 9390 — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 01:06:36 +0000

Hi Loren. I've been a resident of Michigan my entire life, and I'm very much familiar with the legend of the Nain Rouge. I do know of one report that the article failed to mention. On August 16, 1987, Northwest Airlines Flight 255 was taking off from Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport. The plane crashed immediately after take off, killing all of the crew and passengers except for a 4-year-old girl, Cecelia Cichan. Allegedly, just before the crash occured, several motorists on Interstate 94 spotted the Nain Rouge running under an overpass. Although the official FAA and NTSB reports and even the entry on Wikipedia make no mention of the Nain Rouge, many Detroit area residents who believe the stories concerning it feel that the creature's appearance was a harbinger of the horrific event which followed. There are many strange things in this world that we don't have all the answers to, but it has often been said that legends are usually based on at least one kernel of truth.