Gil Trudeau the Red Dog Fox

 Gil Trudeau The Red Dog Fox

By Cole Herrold

In Pennsylvania, both ghost and werewolf accounts are surprisingly common. Sure, Pennsylvania has a reputation for being a major paranormal hotspot mainly because of cryptid and UFO-centered areas like the Chestnut Ridge or Coudersport Triangle, and ghosts are overly fond of making their presence known in Gettysburg but rarely do the two seem to meet. I covered one encounter recently of the Ghost Werewolf of Northumberland County (see entry for more information), which is the spectral form of a werewolf that was shot and killed; however, while it definitely seems unlikely that such a manifestation could possibly be recorded there is in fact not just one but two spectral lycanthropes that are said to roam in the wilds of Pennsylvania. In Brandywine Creek, also known as Brandywine River, there are rumors of a spectral red figure that is rumored to haunt both the Pennsylvania and, on some occasions, Delaware side of the river.

The origin of this apparition can be traced back to the American Revolution, specifically the time around the Battle of the Brandywine in September of 1777. A young French descended man by the name of Gil Trudeau (some sources specifically focused on Delaware’s account spell it Gil Thoreau) whose father served General Lafayette in the continental army. Gil's age was estimated to be anywhere from being a teenager to 45, but from the more detailed occurrences of the account, it appears that he was more than likely somewhere in the ballpark of 16-25. However, while he was merely a boy, he was an incredible tracker and mountain man. His appearance was rugged as someone who had spent most of his life in the woods, but he did have one vibrant feature, which was his bright red hair.

During the all-consuming war, Gil, along with his father, joined the growing army militia against the British, but unlike the others in the brigade, he was not a soldier but a guide and scout for the soldiers to help them in their war against the invading Red Coats. Gil proved a useful guide as the platoon he was involved with worked their way up through the central states of the 13 colonies. Yet somewhere along the platoon's journey up to Delaware County, Pennsylvania, something happened to Gil, and the rest of the troops seemed to notice. While he managed to continue being a guide and making his keep doing so, when the nights of the full moon would come, he would disappear.

The troop would notice Gil's disappearance, but search parties were never made, nor were there ever any suspicion of him aiding their enemies as he would always return a day or two later. Gil in these periods was usually tired, scratched, battered, occasionally covered in blood yet seemingly refreshed, almost as though whatever happened to him reinvigorated his senses. The soldier's seeing that Gil was a mountain man, thought that perhaps this was his way of checking out the area since the moonlight would help make paths clearer at night and living off the land could explain the blood and cuts, whereas others in the platoon felt that Gil was called by the moon and that something more sinister was at foot.

However, while the men came up with rational explanations for Gil's absence, they noticed that whenever Gil was gone, there was seemingly a surge in wolves and other large animals in the area. The group would hear yips and strange cries in the night that were like a fox's only louder and clearer, and animals and livestock around the area would be found torn to shred and partially feasted on. Yet, for the longest time, they could not see the creature that was causing the havoc around the campsites. This, however, would not last long as one night, a group of soldiers nestled around a roaring fire noticed a bizarre figure running near the edge of the campsite. As the group looked at the running form, they noticed that it was a gigantic fox-like creature. The animal was bright red in color but bigger than a wolf. They would see the creature only when Gil was gone for those days, and it always seemed to follow the platoon. Whenever they would move site on a full moon, it was there often darting near the edge running into brushes and hiding in the shadows as it watched the platoon in almost a guardian sort of way.

As is with most human nature, the men were filled with both fear and want of the creature's hide, and so on several occasions, they would aim their muskets at the creature and fire. However, the creature always managed to elude them as it showed almost an intelligence like that of a human's. As the soldiers sat beside the fire, they began to discuss the creature, and while they did so, a new hypothesis sprung up based on an ancient belief. The soldiers whispered remembered lore of men who could change form from wolf to man by magic or infection and that these shapeshifters stalked the night hunting like uncontrolled killing machines.

Sometime later, the moon once again was full, and Gil slipped off into the darkness. The first night of his departure, the men heard the sound of strange dog-like cries, but more alarming was the fact that as this creature called out into the night, other similar wolf-like sounds seemed to answer the beast's yips and howls. These noises freaked the men out to the point that they had felt for the safety of the platoon; they had to put a guard at the edge of the campsite to watch for any potential beast that would seek to harm the group.

On the second night of Gil's disappearance, a guard walked the path along the edge of the camp, musket in hand, watching tentatively for any possible movement. As he stood looking out into the darkness, he saw a bright red blur run in front of him, and realizing it was the red beast they'd seen over the course of weeks, he lifted his rifle and took aim at the creature. Yet either because of the creature's swift movement, the gunman's aim, or the impenetrable darkness, he missed the shot, and the creature vanished like a phantasm. It would not be so lucky on the next night.

On the third night, a guard was walking along the perimeter dead set on killing the beast. The sentry was armed with a preloaded musket and was attempting to blend into the darkness to avoid being seen by the creature. Being a hunter, he thought that perhaps the best way to capture the beast was to sit by a tree and wait for it to come into the area. This is a method that hunters have used for generations to hunt deer and other animals. As he sat near the path, it was getting close to midnight, and almost as if on cue, the creature slowly began to walk out in front of him from the encroaching darkness. He noticed that it looked like a fox, but it was bigger than any dog or wolf that he had ever seen. His head was lowered to give the impression that he was asleep, but in reality, he was waiting for the ideal moment to take the shot as the creature seemingly felt that it was not in danger. The full moon in the sky seemed to make the creature's pelt shine like a bright target, and the sentry watched as it slowed its steps in front of him. The man ever so slowly proceeded to lift the musket to a height and steadiness that as he breathed slowly allowed him to take the shot.

The creature gave a yip of pain, and the man uncurled a smile, knowing that he had hit his target. The creature made a mad chase through the woods, and the man realizing it is dangerous to follow a wounded animal, especially at night, decided to let the creature run off until morning. The others in his platoon were awoken by the loud ringing shot and ran towards the noise, and the soldier hollered to them, explaining that he had shot the creature. The group congratulated him but since they were unsure if the creature was dead stayed up the rest of the night to watch for any vengeful attack from the creature. It was a quiet night, and when dawn's first light broke, the group went to where the creature was hit and began to follow the blood trail that led deep into the woods. For over an hour, they followed the blood, but as the men looked at the trail, they noticed that there was something peculiar about it as at times it would be at the height of something the size of an incredibly large wolf would be but in other cases it was on tree branches and much higher than it should have been. They had found a large puddle of blood near an old, rooted tree where it seemed to rest, and they knew that the creature was not going to survive the shot and that the trail seemed to be heading towards the River, seemingly to become hydrated. The men rounded a curve as they followed the blood, and there leaning against a tree near the water's edge, was the creature. As the men came closer to it, the creature raised its head and seemed to plead for help giving faint dog-like whines as the platoon surrounded the creature muskets aimed. The creature then, with teary eyes, slowly lowered its head on a nearby root and gave a deep sigh and with it gave up the ghost. The sentry that shot the creature smiled and began to grab his hunting knife as he wanted the creature's hide, but as he bent down to begin the skinning and gutting process, a peculiar thing began to happen. In a scene reminiscent of Universal's, the Wolf Man or perhaps more grotesquely like in John Landis’s An American Werewolf in London, the creature began to change the fur began to recede, and the body seemed to change its form and in a matter of second there laying on the ground was the body of Gil Trudeau his red hair tussling in the breeze. The group realizing what had just occurred were at a loss for words and seemingly could do one thing; they buried him right in that spot. After a moment of silence and the erection of a cross seemingly pulled from the Evil Dead, the platoon moved on. There was a war still to fight, and so the group moved from battle to battle, some of them losing their lives in the process, but after the war ended, the group would remember their fallen lycanthrope and would tell his tale around campfires late at night to their children and grandchildren keeping alive the story of the red-haired man.

Years later, people who would walk around Brandywine Creek would report seeing a bright red fox-like creature that would disappear when approached. This is believed to be Gil's ghost which even in death seemed to be cursed. Gil's spirit is said to be a shape-changer as the few reports that do occur from the area have claimed to see a ghost man, ghost red fox creature, ghost wolf, and even a ghost deer and ghost bear, which are often believed to be connected to him somehow yet reports of them are extremely rare, and most visitors to the area tend to see a ghost fox or ghost wolf. Today locals to the area retell the tale of Gil Trudeau and his shape-shifting ghost and have coined him officially the Red Dog Fox.

With stories like this, there is definitely some inkling of truth to it, but just where fact starts and fiction ends are difficult to tell. The encounter above and lore is the most accurate version of the encounter; other resources will change Gil's age and even the time when he died. Books, particularly those focused on Delaware, will mention the Revolutionary War but will state that Gil died in the 1830s, which is not even in United States history associated with any war. When one looks at the Pennsylvania sources, however, there is a stricter timeline where one can point when each event happened, which I've been able to record in this telling.

Now with all that said, what are we to make of this account. The story itself is very similar to countless other werewolf legends and folktales that have sprung up over the years, and this account bears a strong comparison to the Ghost Werewolf of Northumberland County case as both feature accounts of a creature seen in the area, livestock, and animals were killed, the creature however seemingly was not aggressive yet almost protective towards specific people May in the Northumberland case and the platoon in this one, the creature, however, was ultimately killed and discovered to be a person who regularly acted strangely and ultimately the lycanthrope was buried in an unnamed grave, and now their spirit haunts the area. These similarities in these accounts are uncanny and tend to lean more towards folklore than fact. In my research in trying to decipher the truth from the legend in both cases, I was able to verify that the Northumberland County case was authentic as descendants of May still live in the state and claim that the events did take place, whereas with this case I've come up cold. In this case, the only specifically named individuals are Gil Trudeau and General Lafayette. I had attempted to see if anyone in General Lafayette's platoon had the last name of Trudeau since Gil's father was allegedly in his ranks, but I could not find a mention to him and, therefore, no evidence of Gil being a potentially real person. The fact that Gil was put in an unnamed grave also makes it difficult to prove his existence.

Now with that said, it is interesting that people to this day allegedly claim to see spectral animals that match the description of what Gil was supposed to transform into. So perhaps this account could be an authentic case much like the Northumberland one. The only issue with the ghost animal aspect, however, is that there's also the chance that these entities are completely unrelated. Ghost animals are surprisingly common, and particularly ghost wolves known as spook wolves have been reported all across the United States, so maybe what is being seen today is an example of this kind of phenomenon and that the story of Gil Trudeau was a myth of sorts to help explain the phenomenon.

There's also another interesting side note to this case the area of Brandywine Creek is very close to Chester, which is home to another red-haired manimal. The Ape Boy of Chester Swamp is a bigfoot-like creature that has incredibly bright red hair. The Ape-Boy has a legend involving how it came to the swamps around Chester, and it deals with the boy being shunned by society to the point that he decided to live in the swamps, ultimately becoming feral. Now clearly, this is entirely different from Gil Trudeau, but in many ways, it's a very similar story a teenager who lives in the woods and ultimately becomes a red haired creature is very similar the only difference is that Gil turned into a were-fox whereas the Ape-Boy is more primate-like. Perhaps they are the same legend just told slightly different for whatever reason, or perhaps the Gil Trudeau encounter was, in fact, a misidentified Ape-Boy encounter; the platoon thought it was some large canine because of the fur color and size and that when the creature was shot what they thought was an animal turned out to be something more human, and so they buried it. When viewed this way, it's similar to other accounts of people who have allegedly shot bigfoot in the past. Or perhaps the ghost sightings of a red creature are not of a ghost but sightings of an Ape-Boy. With all that said, however, this is simply speculation, and there's no real definitive answer.

The case of Gil Trudeau is an extremely bizarre enigma that is similar to other accounts, but there is a lot of ambiguity with it that makes an official ruling difficult. My personal thoughts are mixed as there's a very good chance that this is just a folktale created as some tragic tale which is a common theme in almost every werewolf flick, especially in such classics as Werewolf of London, The Wolf Man, and An American Werewolf in London but there’s always that chance that it did happen. The name drop of General Lafayette is particularly interesting as it's very similar to Andrew Jackson being mentioned in connection to the Bell Witch or Stephen Decatur and Joseph Bonaparte, who saw the Jersey Devil in the 1800s, it just is a weirdly specific detail that might actually be based on reality. Whatever the truth, I’m sure we will have no definitive answer unless some diary is recovered or some war journal is brought forth confirming the strange events that occurred along Brandywine Creek.

Quick Facts:

Species/Potential Species: Paranormal Entity

Location: Brandywine Creek, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, and Brandywine Creek State Park, Wilmington, New Castle County, Delaware

Sighted: September 1777 to Modern times

Works Cited:

Haunted Delaware By Patricia A. Martinelli

Haunted Places: The National Directory: Ghostly Abodes, Sacred Sites, UFO Landings and Other Supernatural Locations By Dennis William Hauck

Monsters of Pennsylvania By Patty A. Wilson

Supernatural Lore of Pennsylvania: Ghosts, Monsters, and Miracles By Thomas White