Storyline Genealogy — Document & Source Inventory

The Woman at the Grave

Identifying Catherine Messinabikwe Across Five Colonial Spellings

26 cataloged documents · 5 name variants · 2 priests · 3 parishes documented
Evidence chain: Mador → Messinebik8e → Missinebi8e → Nesepik8e → MISSINEBIKOUE
Last updated: March 2026

26Documents Cataloged

5Name Variants Traced

3Parishes Documented

2Priests Compared

5Known Children

1793–1868Documentary Span

This document inventory supports the case study The Woman at the Grave: Identifying Catherine Messinabikwe Across Five Colonial Spellings. Every document listed has a Squarespace URL or source citation, transcription status, and its role in the evidence chain identified. The core argument is paleographic: one Algonquian woman's name, heard and written by different colonial priests at different moments, produced five distinct written forms — yet the linguistic root, the family context, and the mission community all converge on a single identification.

The 1801 burial record of two-year-old François Guilbault at the Oka mission names a witness: Catherine Nesepik8e. No previous researcher had identified her. The case study traces her across parish registers from Longue-Pointe (1793) through Oka (1797–1801), matching five different priestly renderings of the same Algonquian name to establish that Catherine Messinabikwe — Ottawa (Odawa) woman, partner of Jacques Gruet, mother of five children born in the Wisconsin fur trade country and at the Oka mission — was the woman who stood at that grave.

The identification connects two Indigenous families at Oka: the Guilbault-Abitakijikokwe family (Saulteaux/Ojibwe, Lake Superior) and the Gruet-Messinabikwe family (Ottawa/Odawa, Michilimackinac). Both women came from the Great Lakes fur trade world. Both raised and buried children at the same small mission. The 1801 register page where their lives intersect is a window into Oka's multi-nation Indigenous community.

Subject: Catherine Messinabikwe Madore Odaawak (c.1767–unknown). Partner of Jacques/James Gruet (c.1770–unknown). Mother of at least five children: Catherine Anne Skaneisa (c.1786–1837), Guillaume (1789–unknown), Charlotte (c.1793–1799), Marie Thérèse (c.1795–unknown), Antoine Hyacinthe (1798–1885). FamilySearch PID: GZC2-2VQ.

Subject Identification

Catherine Messinabikwe	Born c.1767. Nation: Odawa (Ottawa). Also known as: Madore, Mador, Mabre, Messinebik8e, Missinebikoue, Nesepik8e, Mepenebikoue. FamilySearch PID: GZC2-2VQ. No death record confirmed — 1868 Sandwich burial is a research lead (see Section 6).
Partner	Jacques/James Gruet (also Grouet, Gruette, Grouette), c.1770–unknown. French-Canadian fur trader active in the Wisconsin country. FamilySearch PID: GZC2-F8X. No church marriage found — all children baptized as fils/fille naturel(le).
Known Children	Catherine Anne Skaneisa (c.1786–1837, married François Xavier Oronhiatkhat at Oka); Guillaume (born 13 Jan 1789 in Wisconsin, baptized Longue-Pointe 1793); Charlotte (c.1793–1799, died age ~10 at Oka); Marie Thérèse (c.1795–unknown); Antoine Hyacinthe (14 Feb 1798–1885, founding Western Canadian Métis figure).
Documentary Range	1793 (Longue-Pointe baptisms) through 1801 (François Guilbault burial at Oka). Daughter's burial 1837. Possible 1868 burial at Sandwich, Ontario (unconfirmed).
Connection to Guilbault	Named as witness at the burial of François Guilbault, age 2, son of Gabriel Guilbault & Marie Josephte Abitakijikokwe, at Oka on 4 April 1801. Recorded by Father Leclerc as "Catherine Nesepik8e." Both she and Gabriel declared they could not sign.
The Core Question	Who was "Catherine Nesepik8e" — and is she the same woman recorded as "Catherine Mador" (1793), "Catherine Messinebik8e" (1797–1798), and "Catherine Missinebi8e" (1799)?
Researcher's Relationship	Catherine is connected through the Guilbault-Abitakijikokwe family. Marie Josephte Abitakijikokwe is the researcher's 4th great-grandmother. Catherine's presence at the burial of Marie Josephte's son places her in the Guilbault family's immediate Oka community.

Section 1 · Catherine's Name Across Records — The Evidence Chain

14 documents — Parish registers, PRDH records, typed transcriptions, original manuscripts · 1793–1801

1793 Baptisms — Guillaume & Anne Marie Catherine Grouet, Longue-Pointe

Montréal, Longue-Pointe (St-François-d'Assise) · 27 October 1793 · PRDH #650339 & #650340 · Priest: Girouard

PRDH #650339 — Guillaume Grouet, age 5, fils naturel, born in le Ouisconsin 13 Jan 1789

PRDH Baptism Anne Marie Catherine Grouet 1793

PRDH #650340 — Anne Marie Catherine Grouet, age 6½, fille naturelle, born in le Ouisconsin

1793 Register baptisms both children Catherine Mador

Original register — both baptisms same day. Father: "Jaque Gruette." Mother: "Catherine Mador." Both sous condition (previously unbaptized).

Guillaume: PRDH #650339. "Baptisé sous condition, agé de 5 ans, fils naturel né dans le Ouisconsin le 13-01-1789." The Wisconsin birth confirms fur trade origins — Jacques Gruet was active in the upper Great Lakes and Wisconsin country. Guillaume is missing from the current FamilySearch family and needs to be added.

Anne Marie Catherine: PRDH #650340. "Baptisée sous condition, agée de 6 ans et demi, fille naturelle née dans le Ouisconsin." Birth c.1787. This daughter later married François Xavier Oronhiatkhat (Iroquois) at Oka and died there in 1837 age 51.

NAME VARIANT #1 — "Catherine Mador": French surname only. No Indigenous name recorded. Father rendered as "Jaque Gruette." The Longue-Pointe priest (Girouard) heard or chose to record only the French identity. This is the baseline: the same woman who will appear at Oka four years later under her Algonquian name.

1797 Baptisms — Charlotte & Marie Thérèse Grouet, Oka

L'Annonciation d'Oka · 16 October 1797 · Priest: Father Malard · Typed transcription + full page

1797 typed transcription Charlotte Marie Therese Grouet

Typed transcription detail — Charlotte age 4, Marie Thérèse age 2, filles naturelles. Mother: "Catherine Messinebik8e." Father: "Djan Grouet."

1797 full page typed transcription Oka register

Full page — surrounding Oka entries show mix of Indigenous and French families at the mission

Godparents for both baptisms: Sr Ignace Pillet, Marie Josette Defond, Sr Laurent Bertrand, Marie Félicité Pillet — all signed. Charlotte would die at Oka in 1799, age approximately 10.

NAME VARIANT #2 — "Catherine Messinebik8e": Full Algonquian name appears for the first time. Father Malard at Oka recorded what Father Girouard at Longue-Pointe did not: her Indigenous identity. The "8" represents the Algonquian labiovelar sound (standard colonial transcription). Root analysis: Missin-/Messine- + -bik8e (stone/metal woman). The suffix -ikwe = woman in Algonquian languages.

1798 Baptism — Antoine Hyacinthe Grouet, Oka

L'Annonciation d'Oka · 14 February 1798 · Priest: Father Malard · Typed transcription + original register

1798 Antoine Hyacinthe Grouet typed full page

Typed transcription full page — Antoine Hyacinthe Grouet, fils naturel. Godparents: Antoine Hyacinthe Chesnier, Marie Cécile Dicaire.

1798 original register Antoine Hyacinthe Gruette Malard hand

Original register — Father Malard's handwriting. Compare rendering of mother's name with 1797 and 1799 entries.

Antoine Hyacinthe Grouet (1798–1885) became a founding figure in the Western Canadian Métis community. Born at Oka to an Ottawa mother and a French-Canadian fur trader father, he moved west and became part of the Red River settlement. His trajectory — from a mission baptism to Métis nationhood — is the broadest arc of any of Catherine's children.

NAME VARIANT #3 — "Catherine Messinebi8e" (needs comparison): Same priest (Malard), nearly identical rendering to 1797. Consistent hand across records. The typed transcription shows a slight variation that requires comparison with the original manuscript — the handwriting comparison between 1797, 1798, and 1799 entries by the same priest is a core element of the paleographic argument.

1799 Burial — Marie Charlotte Gruet, Oka

L'Annonciation d'Oka · 8 May 1799 · PRDH #773817 · Priest: Father Malard · Age 10, death 7 May 1799

PRDH #773817 — Father: James GRUET. Mother: Catherine MISSINEBIKOUE. Present: Williams Gruet, Michel Mokaba.

1799 register detail Charlotte burial Malard Missinebi8e

1799 register full page Charlotte burial Oka

Full register page — marked "Sauvage ptre." Other entries include Pascal Poirier burial, Geneviève Pachitabano8e burial.

Charlotte died at age approximately 10 — she had been baptized in 1797 as age 4, born c.1793. Witnesses Williams Gruet (a relative of Jacques?) and Michel Mokaba confirm an extended family and community network at the mission. The same-day burial of Geneviève Pachitabano8e, age approximately 48, another Indigenous woman, underscores the losses this small community absorbed.

NAME VARIANT #4 — "Catherine Missinebi8e" (Malard's hand): Same priest, third rendering. Slight shift: "Missine" vs. earlier "Messine." PRDH normalized the name as MISSINEBIKOUE. The consistency across three Malard records (1797, 1798, 1799) establishes the baseline against which the 1801 Leclerc rendering must be compared. Malard heard M-ssinebi8e. Two years later, a different priest would hear something different.

1801 Burial — François Guilbault, Oka · THE PIVOTAL RECORD

L'Annonciation d'Oka · 4 April 1801 · Priest: Father Leclerc · Son of Gabriel Guilbault & Marie Josephte Abitakijikokwe · Witness: Catherine Nesepik8e

1801 typed transcription François Guilbault burial Catherine Nesepik8e

Typed transcription — François age 2. Mother: "Marie Josephte Abitakijikek8e." Present: "Gabriel [Guilbau] (brother) and Catherine Nesepik8e." Both declared they could not sign.

1801 original register François burial Leclerc hand Nesepik8e Abitakijikokwe

Original manuscript — Leclerc's hand: "Catherine Nesepik8e." Compare with Malard's "Missinebi8e" — different priest, different hearing of the same name.

1801 full page typed transcription April entries Oka

Full page typed transcription — April 1801 Oka entries. Multiple Indigenous names to identify. See Section 4: The 1801 Register Page.

1801 register two-page spread original manuscript

Original manuscript — two-page spread, March–April 1801. Priests: Sauvage and Leclerc. All Indigenous names on this spread need identification.

NAME VARIANT #5 — "Catherine Nesepik8e" (Leclerc's hand): THIS IS THE CORE OF THE IDENTIFICATION ARGUMENT. Father Leclerc wrote "Nesepik8e" where Father Malard (1797–1799) consistently wrote "M-ssinebi8e." Initial "N" vs. "M." Middle "sep" vs. "ssin." But the same -bik8e/-pikwe suffix (Algonquian "stone/metal woman") is constant. Same Christian name (Catherine). Same mission community. Same time period. Same association with French-Canadian fur trade families. The difference is the priest, not the woman.

Section 2 · Name Variant Analysis — Five Spellings, One Woman

Paleographic comparison across two priests, three parishes, and eight years

The Name Chain — How Different Priests Heard the Same Algonquian Name

Core methodological evidence · Five variants across five records · 1793–1801

Year	Record	Priest	Name as Written	Rendering	Analysis
1793	Baptism (Longue-Pointe)	Girouard	Catherine Mador / Mabre	French surname only	No Indigenous name recorded. Two different French surnames for the same person. Longue-Pointe context = French identity foregrounded.
1797	Baptism (Oka)	Malard	Catherine Messinebik8e	Messinebikwe	Full Algonquian name. Root: Missin-/Messine- + -bik8e (stone/metal woman). Algonquian ikwe = woman.
1798	Baptism (Oka)	Malard	Catherine Messinebi8e	Messinebikwe	Same priest, nearly identical rendering. Consistent hand.
1799	Burial (Oka)	Malard	Catherine Missinebi8e	Missinebikwe	Same priest, third time. Slight: "Missine" vs. "Messine." PRDH normalized: MISSINEBIKOUE.
1801	Burial (Oka)	Leclerc	Catherine Nesepik8e	Nesepikwe	DIFFERENT PRIEST → DIFFERENT HEARING. Initial "N" vs. "M." Middle "sep" vs. "ssin." Same -bik8e/-pikwe suffix. Core of the identification.

THE PATTERN: Father Malard (1797–1799) consistently wrote M-ssinebi8e. Father Leclerc (1801) wrote Nesepik8e. The -bik8e/-bikwe suffix (Algonquian "stone/metal woman") is constant across ALL renderings. PRDH normalized to MISSINEBIKOUE. French contexts (Longue-Pointe 1793, possibly Sandwich 1868) used only "Mador/Mabre." This is ONE WOMAN seen through the ears and pens of different colonial priests.

Additional database renderings: WikiTree and Geni list "Messinabikwe / Messinebike" with "Odaawak" (Ottawa nation) designation, compiled from multiple sources. FamilySearch PID GZC2-2VQ lists alternate names: Madore, Mador, Mabre, Missinebikoue, Messinebik8e, Nesepik8e, Mepenebikoue.

Section 3 · Connection to the Guilbault-Abitakijikokwe Family

4 documents — François Guilbault PRDH records & baptism register, linking Catherine to the Saulteaux family at Oka

François Guilbault — PRDH Records & Birth Register

PRDH Individual #4347434 · Baptism: St-Paul-de-Joliette, 10 Sep 1799 · Burial: Oka, 4 Apr 1801 · PRDH Burial #2752515

PRDH Individual François Guilbault son of Gabriel

PRDH Individual #4347434 — François Guilbault. Baptized St-Paul-de-Lavaltrie 10 Sep 1799. Buried Oka 4 Apr 1801.

PRDH Burial François Guilbault Catherine Mesepik8e witness

PRDH Burial #2752515 — Catherine indexed as witness. Parents: Gabriel Guilbault & Marie Josephte Abitakijikokwe.

1799 baptism register François mother sauvagesse de la nation des sauteux

1799 Birth register — mother identified only as "sauvagesse de la nation des Sauteux." No name. Compare with Oka records where her full Ojibwe name was preserved.

PRDH Baptism François mother Josephte Sauvagesse de la nation des Sauteux

PRDH Baptism — Father: "Gabriel Guilbault, voyageur et agriculture." Mother: "Josephte Sauvagesse de la nation des Sauteux."

The documentary logic: François was born at St-Paul-de-Joliette in September 1799, where the priest recorded his mother only as "sauvagesse de la nation des Sauteux" — no name. He died at Oka in April 1801, where Father Leclerc preserved his mother's full Ojibwe name: "Marie Josephte Abitakijikokwe." At that same burial, standing beside Gabriel, was "Catherine Nesepik8e" — the woman this case study identifies as Catherine Messinabikwe of the Gruet family.

TWO INDIGENOUS WOMEN, ONE REGISTER PAGE: The burial record preserves two Algonquian names — Abitakijikokwe (the mother) and Nesepik8e (the witness). Two women from different Great Lakes nations (Saulteaux and Ottawa) sharing grief at the Oka mission. The identification of Catherine Nesepik8e as Catherine Messinabikwe connects these two families and reveals the multi-nation Indigenous community at Oka around 1800.

Section 4 · Daughter Catherine's Records — Proving Daughter ≠ Mother

2 documents — 1837 burial proves Catherine Anne Grouet is the daughter, not the mother

1837 Burial — Catherine Anne Grouet, Oka

L'Annonciation d'Oka · 9 October 1837 · PRDH #4722485 · Age 51 · Veuve, épouse de François Xavier Oronhiatkhat · Priest: N. Dufresne

1837 burial register Catherine Anne Grouet full page

Burial register — 9 October 1837. Catherine Anne Grouet, age 51, widow, épouse de François Xavier Oronhiatkhat.

1837 burial detail Catherine Anne Grouet age 51

Detail — "Catherine Anne Grouet, décidée l'avant veille, âgée de cinquante un ans." Witnesses: Antoine Merz & Hyacinthe Proulx (her brother).

THIS IS THE DAUGHTER, NOT THE MOTHER. Age 51 in 1837 = born c.1786 — matching Anne Marie Catherine Grouet, baptized at Longue-Pointe in 1793 at age 6½. She married François Xavier Oronhiatkhat (Iroquois) at Oka in 1806 and had seven children there between 1807 and 1819. Her witness Hyacinthe Proulx is identified as her brother. This burial record is critical negative evidence: any future research that identifies a "Catherine Grouet" burial at Oka in 1837 as the mother is misidentifying the daughter.

Section 5 · The 1801 Register Page — Oka's Multi-Nation Community

15 individuals identified across 8 register entries · March–April 1801 · Iroquois, Algonquian, French families

Every Name on the Page — March–April 1801 Oka Register

Full community context for François Guilbault's burial · Priests: Sauvage and Leclerc · Indigenous names on every line

Date	Record	Person	Indigenous Name	Nation	Details	Status
28 Mar	Burial	Agathe Françoise	Kareniato?	Iroquois	Age ~14. "Iroquoise of this mission." Priest: Sauvage.	Partial
28 Mar	Witness	Louis Rosennaha8enet	Rosennaha8enet	Iroquois?	Witnessed Agathe Françoise burial.	Not identified
28 Mar	Witness	François Xavier Ronsanin8on	Ronsanin8on	Iroquois?	Witnessed Agathe Françoise burial.	Not identified
4 Apr	Burial	François Guilbault	—	French-Métis	Age 2. Son of Gabriel & Marie Josephte Abitakijikek8e. OUR RECORD.	Identified
4 Apr	Witness	Catherine Nesepik8e	Nesepik8e (= Messinabikwe)	Ottawa	THE WOMAN WE'RE IDENTIFYING. Priest: Leclerc.	Strong candidate
5 Apr	Baptism	Elizabeth	—	Iroquois	Age ~3 weeks. Parents: Ignace Karetton & Catherine Kangankob8en. Priest: Sauvage.	Partial
5 Apr	Mother	Catherine Kangankob8en	Kangankob8en	Iroquois	DIFFERENT Catherine from Nesepik8e.	Not identified
8 Apr	Burial	Catherine (elderly)	Not fully legible	Iroquois	Age ~80. "Iroquoise of this mission." Witnesses: Laurent Sarita(?), Alois Sagotibli.	Not identified
8 Apr	Witness	Alois Sagotibli	Sagotibli	Iroquois?	Witnessed both Catherine (~80) and Jean Bernard burials same day.	Not identified
8 Apr	Burial	Jean Bernard	—	Mixed?	Age ~1. Parents: Ignace Roteinakge & Angélique Tisakatasaran ("sauvagesse").	Partial
8 Apr	Father	Ignace Roteinakge	Roteinakge	Iroquois?	Father of Jean Bernard.	Not identified
8 Apr	Mother	Angélique Tisakatasaran	Tisakatasaran	Indigenous	"Sauvagesse" — no nation specified.	Not identified
8 Apr	Witness	Charles Garontataron	Garontataron	Iroquois?	Witness at Jean Bernard burial.	Not identified
8 Apr	Baptism	Louise	—	French	Parents: Antoine Roi & Marie Louise Seguin, cultivateurs de Rigaud. NON-INDIGENOUS entry.	N/A

What this page reveals: In an eleven-day span at the Oka mission, the register records two burials of young children (Agathe Françoise, age 14; François Guilbault, age 2), two infant burials (Jean Bernard, age 1; Catherine, age ~80), one infant baptism (Elizabeth), and one French baptism (Louise). The Indigenous names — Karetton, Kangankob8en, Roteinakge, Tisakatasaran, Garontataron, Rosennaha8enet, Ronsanin8on, Sagotibli — are overwhelmingly Iroquois, reflecting Oka's Kanehsatà:ke Mohawk community. Catherine Nesepik8e and Marie Josephte Abitakijikokwe stand out as Algonquian names in an Iroquois-majority mission context.

Section 6 · Research Leads — Still to Confirm

1 document cataloged + 12 priority research gaps · The 1868 Sandwich burial · Catherine's missing death record

1868 Burial — Catherine Madore, Sandwich, Ontario Research Needed

L'Assomption parish, Sandwich, Essex, Ontario · 6 July 1868 · Age ~85

1868 Sandwich burial Catherine Madore veuve de François Brian Grouette

Burial register — "Catherine Madore, veuve de François Brian Grouette, âgée d'environ quatre-vingt-cinq ans." ⚠ RESEARCH FLAG

⚠ RESEARCH FLAG: This reads "Catherine Madore, veuve de François Brian Grouette, âgée d'environ quatre-vingt-cinq ans." Age 85 in 1868 → born c.1783. If the mother Catherine was born c.1767, she would be approximately 101 in 1868 — an age discrepancy of roughly 16 years. The spouse name "François Brian Grouette" does NOT match Jacques/James Gruet.

Three possibilities: (a) A different Catherine Madore in the broader Grouette family. (b) The mother Catherine Messinabikwe with an inaccurate recorded age. (c) A daughter-in-law or other relative. The use of "Madore" — the same French surname from the 1793 Longue-Pointe baptism — is suggestive. The Sandwich/Windsor location is consistent with westward movement toward the Great Lakes fur trade routes. Requires further research: Sandwich parish records, PRDH/BMS2000 index, identification of "François Brian Grouette."

Priority Research Gaps Open

Organized by priority · HIGH = affects core identification · MED = extends the story · LOW = contextual enrichment

Priority	Document Needed	Where to Search	Why It Matters
HIGH	Catherine's own baptism record	Michilimackinac (Ste. Anne's) registers; possibly late baptism at Oka or Montréal	Would confirm her nation (Ottawa/Odawa), her parents, and approximate birth date. Eliminates the c.1767 vs. c.1783 ambiguity.
HIGH	Church marriage to Jacques Gruet	Oka, Montréal, Longue-Pointe registers	All children baptized as fils/fille naturel(le) suggesting no church marriage. If no record exists, document as negative evidence.
HIGH	Catherine's burial record (the MOTHER)	Oka (if died before c.1810s); Sandwich/Windsor ON; or Red River	The 1837 Oka burial is the DAUGHTER. The 1868 Sandwich burial needs confirmation. Mother's death is UNKNOWN.
HIGH	1868 Sandwich burial — full analysis	Sandwich (L'Assomption) parish, Essex, Ontario. PRDH or BMS2000 index.	Who was "François Brian Grouette"? Is this actually Catherine Messinabikwe? Resolve the age discrepancy.
MED	Guillaume Grouet's later records	After 1793 baptism (born 1789 Wisconsin). Missing from FamilySearch.	Did he survive to adulthood? What happened after conditional baptism? Add to FamilySearch.
MED	Marie Thérèse Grouet's later records	After 1797 baptism at Oka (age 2)	No burial found, no marriage found. Did she survive? Marry? Move west with siblings?
MED	Jacques/James Gruet's burial record	Oka, Sandwich, or elsewhere. WikiTree: born 1770, death unknown.	When and where did he die? Affects Catherine's status as widow in 1868 record.
MED	Catherine as godmother/witness in other Oka records	PRDH individual record search; browse Oka registers 1795–1810	Would establish her social network at the mission and relationship to the Guilbault family.
MED	1825 or 1831 Oka mission census	Pouliot-Thisdale transcriptions; Library & Archives Canada	Could show Catherine and/or Jacques still at Oka, or confirm they had already left.
LOW	Eric Pouliot-Thisdale's 1801–1821 volume	Contact researcher; academia.edu	His 1786–1800 volume covers the Grouet entries. A 1801–1821 volume would contain the François burial transcription.
LOW	Algonquian linguistic analysis of "Messinabikwe"	Algonquin or Ojibwe language scholar; ojibwe.lib.umn.edu	Name root missin- + abik + -we/kwe may reveal meaning ("big stone woman" or "metal/lead woman"). Confirms Ottawa/Ojibwe nation.
LOW	Michilimackinac register connections	Access Genealogy transcribed registers; FamilySearch films	Any Mador/Madore entries in 1760s–1780s could reveal her family of origin and confirm Ottawa heritage.

Document Count Summary

Category	Count	Status
Catherine's name across records — evidence chain (1793–1801)	14 documents	✅ Complete
Connection to Guilbault-Abitakijikokwe family	4 documents	✅ Complete
Daughter Catherine's records (proving daughter ≠ mother)	2 documents	✅ Complete
Family context records (FamilySearch profiles, family view)	3 documents	⚠ Guillaume missing from FamilySearch
1801 register page — community names identified	15 individuals across 8 entries	⚠ Most names not yet identified
Research leads — 1868 Sandwich burial	1 document	⚠ Research needed
Name variant analysis	5 variants across 8 renderings	✅ Complete — pattern established
TOTAL DOCUMENTS CATALOGED	26 documents	✅ Inventory complete
Open: Mother's burial (unknown) · 1868 Sandwich burial (unconfirmed) · Catherine's own baptism (not found) · Guillaume's later records (not searched) · Linguistic analysis (not started)

Case Study Outline — Draft Status

Section	Content	Documents Used	Status
I · The Question	Who was Catherine Nesepik8e? The 1801 burial record names a woman no one has identified.	#11–14	Ready
II · The Context	Two Indigenous women from the Great Lakes fur trade, both raising and burying children at the same small mission.	#8–10, #25–26	Ready
III · The Methodology	Tracing one Indigenous woman across five colonial spellings. How different priests heard the same name.	#3, #4, #9, #11 + Name Variants	Ready
IV · The Identification	Catherine Messinabikwe, Ottawa woman from Michilimackinac. The evidence chain from Mador to Nesepik8e.	All 14 + Name Variants	Ready
V · The Families	Two families at Oka — Guilbault-Abitakijikokwe (Saulteaux) and Gruet-Messinabikwe (Ottawa). Shared grief, shared community.	#8–14 + Guilbault records	Ready
VI · The Broader Story	The 1801 register page as a window into Oka's multi-nation community. Indigenous names on every line.	#12, #14 + 1801 Register Names	In Progress
VII · The Legacy	The Grouette family as founding Western Canadian Métis. From Michilimackinac to Red River and beyond.	FamilySearch, WikiTree, A Canadian Family blog	Needs Research
VIII · Open Questions	The 1868 Sandwich burial. Guillaume's disappearance. The mother's death.	#22 + Still Needed	Needs Research

Navigate the Research

This document inventory supports the case study and connects to the broader Guilbault-Abitakijikokwe research. Return to the Abitakijikokwe Discovery, the Voyageur Years, or the documentary biographies from here.

The Abitakijikokwe Discovery → Abitakijikokwe Methodology → Gabriel Guilbault père → The Voyageur Years →