Hester (Esther) Bennett

The Bennett’s were Native Americans, members of the Stockbridge band of the Mohicans, the same tribe that George claimed as his mother Diana’s ancestry. The Bennett family’s links with the Stockbridge are better documented than Diana’s, their names appear on tribe censuses and some of the family, including Elizabeth, lived on reservation lands and were included on tribal rolls

Esther Bennett , sometimes referred to in the records as Hester, was born in Salem, Washington County, New York on November 22, 1823 and was not only five years older than her sister, she was even a little older than George.[94] While it doesn’t appear that Elizabeth and George were ever married, at least some people believed that Esther and George were married.[95] George’s second relationship didn’t produce any children, but it lasted much longer, George and Esther lived together for over fifty years.

We can only imagine what kind of interesting family dynamics the breakup of George’s relationship with Elizabeth and the start of his life with Esther may have created in the Crum family. And those potential issues may have been why George’s son’s Richard and William were not living with him in 1855. Richard, only eight years old, was a live-in servant for one of George’s neighbors, Philip Riley and his family.[96] William, the oldest boy, was living with George’s parents on the family property north of the Village of Ballston Spa.[97]

There’s no sign that either of the boys lived with George and Esther again. In the years before the Civil War both boys worked on neighbor’s farms, likely working for board as well as wages.[98] Only the youngest son, George Jr. remained at home during this time http://chipscrumsandspecksofsaratogacountyhistory.com/category/crum...