Named after her grandmother, Rebecca Power (1800-1825) was the first child born to Nicholas and Anna Power on May 8, 1800. She was the oldest sister of Sarah Helen, Susan, Nicholas VII, and Susan Anna Power. Her younger sister Susan and brother Nicholas did not survive past their infancy.

Rebecca was said to be one of the most beautiful girls in Providence. It was probably for this reason that many of the law students attending Brown University were in competition to be her suitor, including John Winslow Whitman and William Read Staples. Staples won both her heart and her hand, and they married in 1821. John Winslow turned his attention to Sarah Helen.

In 1822, Rebecca gave birth to a daughter and named her Rebecca. Sadly, the baby died in 1824. William and Rebecca tried again, having another child that same year. A boy, William Staples Jr., was born. On September 14, 1825, Rebecca Staples died from an unknown illness and her last surviving child, William Jr., died a few years later in 1829.

As quickly as the Staples family came together, death had torn them apart. In an 1830 letter, William Staples laments the passing of his wife and children, “A loss that the world cannot fill—how death has deprived me of the last remaining pledge of my Rebecca’s affection and took the only son she bore me from this world of trouble.”

However, William Staples did not waste any time moving on with a new family. He married his cousin, Evelina Eaton, the same year that Rebecca died. They had their first of eight children together in 1828. Many of these children, including Rebecca and William Jr., are buried together in the same plot with their parents, William Staples Sr., Rebecca Power Staples, and Evelina Eaton Staples at the North Burial Ground.

The Judge William R. Staples house is located at 75 Benefit Street, just a few doors down from the Power/Whitman residence at 88 Benefit Street on the opposite side of the road. It is possible that he moved here with his wife, Rebecca, shortly before her passing or that he occupied this house right after her death.

The Judge William R. Staples house at 75 Benefit Street. Photo by Levi L. Leland.