Who is Henry Dupuis?

My Great (x3) Grandmother Catharine is a enigma. Upon her death in 1912 she had stated that she never left the great lakes in all her life. According to limited genealogical data her father was Peter Duforce of Fort Detroit, a Frenchman. Her death certificate written at a Nursing home in Big Rapids, Michigan tells a different story. (K)Catherine according to that document was daughter of Henry Dupuis, a Belgian immigrant. So who is this Henry Dupuis and how could he possibly be her father?

In searching the back story of Peter Dufour born of Bonvivant in New France (1754) one comes across the general consensus that Peter was a traveling man. Thinking back to the research shared with me by Guy Carpentier,of the Dufour Family organization, we have evidence that post revolution Peter traveled under assumed names between the lakes and river fronts. Peter eventually retook his name over time and it is here that we find him mentioned in the journal's of  John Baptiste Perrualt II, which are published in "Michigan Pioneer and Historical Collections" in 1909". Perrault began traveling in 1783 with the local fur trade alliances down the Mississippi. His companions for this trip are named as Canadian men: Mr. Sacharit of Quebec;  St.Germain, Mr. Robert & Mr. Dupuis of Maskinong; Antoine & Francois Beauchemin, Manard, L.Lavalle of Sorel & Yamaska. Marchesseau sold all his goods in the trade to Chouteau, of St-Louis.
It is here that we have the first appearance of Dupuis alongside a trip that would fall headlong into a encounter with Peter Dufour (alias Dufaut).

"...Upon entering the river the next day and doubling the point of the little lake, we saw a wintering-house. It was that of Mr. Dufaut, come from Grand Portage, clerk for NW. and we stopped before his door. As Mr.Kay had perhaps taken only one drink he now took the second which made him ill-tempered so that instead of receiving politely Mr. Dufaut, who came down to meet him on the beach, he treated him rudely... "


At this time Dufour and children of related surnames began to be birthed in the area in which both Dupuis and Peter Dufour travelled. A Pierre Dufault for example appears in one of the areas know to be propagated by Pierre son of Bonvivant.

Pierre Dufault, Ojibwa Metis, b-1815 Sault Ste Marie son of Ojibwa Metis parents, listed March 28, 1836 treaty.

It was popular at the time for Frenchmen to have multiple families because the Catholic church did not always honor marriages between frenchmen and Indians. It is possible that Catherine's mother was never legally wed which explains the lack of documentation. However family story claims that there is a existing newspaper announcement from the times stating that Pierre Dufour had wed an indian woman. For now information like that remains a holy grail. Yet I cannot dismiss the existence of Henry Dupuis from Belgium.