After losing an arm in an accident, he gave up bricklaying and found work as a clerk in a small grocery store.
He opened his first store, Ralphs and Francis, in 1873, in the Spring Street Financial District of Los Angeles with S. A.
While taking a walk with his wife in Waterman's Canyon, Ralphs stopped to rest on top of a boulder.
As he attempted to help his wife up to sit beside him, the boulder became dislodged and began rolling down the mountain side along with Ralphs.
Ralphs awoke from the surgery and spoke to his wife for a few minutes, but died of shock later that afternoon.