Background
He was the son of Anthony Rapallo and Elizabeth (Gould) Rapallo.
He was the son of Anthony Rapallo and Elizabeth (Gould) Rapallo.
He never went to school. In 1837, he began to study law in his father"s office, was admitted to the bar in 1843, and practiced in New York City. In 1870, he was elected on the Democratic ticket to a fourteen-year term on the New York Court of Appeals.
In 1880, he ran for Chief Judge but was defeated by Republican Charles J. Folger.
Rapallo was re-elected in 1884, and died in office. He died of "Bright"s disease and heart trouble" at his home at 17 West Thirty-first Street in New York City.