American mobster Ralph Capone gained notoriety as the older brother of infamous gangster Al Capone. Because of his legal non-alcoholic beverage and bottling business—and not because he was involved in the gang’s bootlegging operations—he was frequently referred to as Ralph “Bottles” Capone. He moved to the USA with his family after leaving his birthplace of Italy. Growing up in Downtown Brooklyn, New York, he worked at modest, respectable jobs to help support his family. Ralph moved to Chicago with his two younger brothers after his father passed away, where he took care of the “Outfit” gambling dens in Cicero. Ralph was placed in command when the gang began bottling plants during the Prohibition, and he made money for the group. He was given a three-year prison sentence after being found guilty of tax evasion. He was designated as the “Chicago Crime Committee’s #3 Public Enemy.” Ralph made investments in a range of companies, including hotels, cigarette vending machines, and bottling facilities. Ralph Jr., the son he had three marriages to, killed himself in 1950. At the age of 80, Ralph Sr. passed away from natural causes.
Early Life & Childhood of Ralph Capone
On January 12, 1894, Ralph Capone was born Raffaele James Capone in Angri, a small hamlet in Campania, Italy, close to Mount Vesuvius. He was the second of Gabriele and Teresina Capone’s nine children (née Raiola). On June 18, 1895, he boarded the ship “Werra” with his mother and older brother Vincenzo, and they entered the United States through Ellis Island. Six months prior, his father had traveled across Canada to get to the US. They made their home in Brooklyn, New York’s Navy Yard neighborhood.
After completing the sixth grade, Ralph dropped out of school to work as a telegraph delivery boy in order to supplement his family’s finances. He then lived a law-abiding, career as a life insurance salesman and was not involved in crime. He was a soft drink delivery driver in New York as well.
While his younger brothers, Al and Frank, relocated to Chicago to join Torrio in the “Chicago Outfit,” Ralph stayed in New York. The remainder of the family went to Chicago after their father passed away in 1920, staying with Al in his newly acquired home; Ralph, however, lived independently.
Employed by Chicago Outfit
After the gang relocated to Cicero from Chicago, Ralph was given control over the speakeasies and casinos there. Robert St. John, the editor of the “Cicero Tribune,” attempted to use his publication to expose the mob’s activities. The gang members attempted to buy him off after initially intimidating him. However, he persisted in exposing the gang and their efforts to seize control of the community. The editor had to be hospitalized after Ralph and his three friends beat him up and attacked him. He attempted to report Ralph to the police. After he rejected Al Capone’s effort to buy him, the Capones resolved the matter by purchasing the “Cicero tribune.”
Ralph was put in charge of the gang’s bottling factories during the Prohibition era, which allowed them to profit from soft drinks that were not alcoholic. He made money for the Outfit and successfully managed the company. He rose to become the second-largest soft drink dealer in Chicago during the “1933 World’s Fair.”
Al trusted Ralph the most despite the fact that he was not as smart as his brothers and made mistakes frequently. After being detained and incarcerated in 1929 for possessing a concealed firearm, Al Capone operated the Outfit out of jail using Ralph. Ralph was being watched in public while he watched a boxing fight when the “Internal Revenue Service” apprehended him on suspicion of not filing income tax forms. Because it was late, he was not granted instant bail.
He later left prison after posting bail and resumed his bootlegging activities with the gang. However, he continued his business through a café where the authorities had tapped the telephone lines. He received a jail sentence and a $40,000 fine in April of 1930. At this point, he was publicly ridiculed for his lack of intelligence by his powerful boss and younger brother, Al. Ralph was transferred to “Leavenworth, Kansas” for three years after being caught in November 1930 (other sources state 1931). Despite his efforts, Ralph was able to stay out of jail.
Ralph’s standing in the Outfit suffered after Al was found guilty by the IRS. He had gang meetings at his brother’s estate in Palm Island, Florida. Despite being the organization’s and the “National Crime Syndicate’s” front man, he had no influence within the Outfit.
In addition to being the silent partner in a pub and hotel in Mercer, Wisconsin called Billy’s Bar and The Rex Hotel, Ralph also owned a dance club in Stickney. He also owned a stake in two businesses: one that sold cigarettes and the other that bottled water. He made Mercer, Wisconsin, his home, where he lived for the most of his life.
Ralph took care of the media at Al’s mansion while he was with the family during his last severe sickness. He was invited to testify in Washington, DC, in 1950 before the “US Senate Kefauver Committee,” which was looking into the relationships and activities of the underworld. He discussed his own business ventures but withheld any contact information or mob secrets.
Ralph Capone suffered a severe emotional setback when his son Ralph Jr. committed suicide later that year. The IRS started looking into his accounts once more, but this time there was no arrest or jail time.
After living his entire life in Mercer, Wisconsin, Ralph Capone passed away on November 22, 1974, from a heart attack. He was eighty.
Individual Life of Ralph Capone
Among the brothers, Ralph was the first to tie the knot. On September 24, 1915, at the age of 21, he wed 17-year-old Filomena/Florence Muscato. On April 17, 1917, Ralph Jr., also known as Ralph Gabriel Capone, was born.
After the death of Gabriel Capone, the father of the Capone brothers, in November 1920, Al and Frank traveled to Chicago together with the rest of the family. However, Ralph brought his kid with him because his wife didn’t want to leave, and his mother Theresa—who had previously gone by Teresina—cared for Ralph Jr. Ralph and his wife separated in 1921 due to her abandonment. In 1923, he later wed Velma Pheasant. They had no children when they later got divorced in 1938.
Ralph Jr., his 33-year-old son, killed himself on November 9, 1950, by drinking whiskey combined with cold medicine. (He’d been in and out of marriage, and tried a lot of occupations). Ralph Sr. was really shocked by this loss.
In 1951, Ralph Sr. wed Madeline. He spent his entire life in Wisconsin. On November 22, 1974, he passed away in Hurley, Wisconsin, from natural causes. He was cremated and interred at Park Hill Cemetery in Duluth, Minnesota. Later, in June 2008, his granddaughter interred his remains at the Capone family cemetery in Chicago.
Random Facts of Ralph Capone
Ralph possessed a sterling silver lapel button with a unique monogram and enjoyed dressing nicely. He had a racehorse and was proud of it.
Net worth of Ralph Capone
The estimated net worth of Ralph Capone is about $1 million .