Résumé

Machinist, Los Angeles, CA, c. 1943-1944.

Founder, A.G. Tutor Construction Company, Los Angeles, CA, 1949-1981.

Partner, Tutor-Saliba, General Contractors, 1972-present. In 1983, Tutor-Saliba had its offices at 15901 Olden Street, Sylmar, CA.

High School

Graduate, Polytechnic High School, Los Angeles, CA, 1929.

Relocation

Tutor was born in Konia, Turkey, on 09/03/1910. He resided in Konia and, later, Istanbul, Turkey, before emigrating. Tutor left Turkey well after the beginning of the Armenian Genocide in 1915, when ethnic Armenians living in that country began to be either killed or deported. In all, approximately 1.5 million Armenians were thought to have been exterminated by Turkish authorities between 1914 and 1923, making this one of the twentieth century's worst ethnic annihilations.

He entered the US via the Port of New York, NY, on 09/01/1922 aboard the S.S. Acropolis. During the 1910s and early 1920s, the S.S. Acropolis was a small but notable passenger liner, launched in 1890 as the S.S. Michigan, that transported streams of Greek and Armenian immigrants fleeing deteriorating social conditions in Turkey. Entry into the US became much more difficult in 1921, when Congress passed the Emergency Immigration Act of 1921, which severely limited the numbers of immigrants coming into the US from non-Northern European countries. (This act, sponsored by Representative Albert Johnson (1869-1957) of Tacoma, WA, limited the annual immigrant count from any country to 3% of their national representation as recorded by the US Census of 1910. The 1921 measure and Johnson's even more restrictive Immigration Act of 1924, greatly curtailed immigration from Southern and Eastern Europe.)

In 1930, Albert resided with his two brothers at 1138 South Gage Avenue in Montebello, CA. The Varjabedians had a residence worth an estimated $5,000 at the time.

He first applied for naturalization to become a US Citizen on 07/22/1941 and received it on 11/26/1943.In 1943-1946, he resided at 465 North Croft Avenue in Los Angeles. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation National Archives at Riverside; Riverside, California; NAI Number: 594890; Record Group Title: 21; Record Group Number: Records of District Courts of the United States, 1685-2009, accessed 10/24/2018 and Ancestry.com, Source Citation California State Library; Sacramento, California; Great Register of Voters, 1900-1968, accessed 10/24/2018.)

Sometime between 1946 and 1948, Tutor moved to the Los Angeles neighborhood of Sherman Oaks, CA, where he lived at 13350 Riverside Drive. He and his wife, Elaine, continued to lived here in 1958. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation California State Library; Sacramento, California; Great Register of Voters, 1900-1968, accessed 10/24/2018.)

Voting records from 1962 indicated that he and his family lived at 4855 Louise Avenue in the Encino neighborhood of Los Angeles. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation California State Library; Sacramento, California; Great Register of Voters, 1900-1968, accessed 10/24/2018.)

Tutor had an apartment (#6) at 115 LaCumbre Road in Santa Barbara, CA, in 1964, perhaps while he supervised a large project in the area. (See Santa Barbara, California, City Directory, 1964, p. 653.)

During 1994 through 1997, he lived in Van Nuys, CA, and spent 1998 and half of 1999 in Agoura Hills, CA.

Family

In 1930, Albert lived with his two relatives, Puzant Verjabedian (born 05/23/1904 in Turkey) and Newton G. Verjabedian (born 03/04/1910 in Turkey) and Puzant's wife, Takouhy, (born 05/23/1911 in Batum, Russia). The 1930 US Census dismissively recorded Puzant's profession as "rubbish dealer;" one year later, a naturalization form of 04/10/1931 indicated that he worked as a truck driver. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Washington, D.C.; NAI Number: 156; Record Group Title: M1524; Record Group Number: Naturalization Records of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, Central Division (Los Angeles), 1887-1940, accessed 10/23/2018.) The three Verjabedians all immigrated to the US on 09/01/1922 aboard the S.S. Acropolis, while Nakouhy came one year later and landed in Boston, MA.

Spouse

He married Hranoush Noragougian (born 08/12/1914 in Yeni Bayazid, Russia), who changed her name to Elaine Noradoun Tutor, who was of Russian descent, on 05/06/1939 in Pomona, CA. Her petition for naturalization of 06/12/1944 also noted that she used the surname "Chalkopian" at one time. She arrived in the Port of New York, NY, aboard the S.S. Braga as "Hranoush Chalkopian" on 06/06/1926.

Children

He and Elaine had one son, Robert N. Tutor (born 10/13/1940 in Los Angeles, CA). He would go on to build the Tutor-Saliba Corporation and the Tutor-Perini Corporation, both giant construction firms.

Biographical Notes

Tutor was born "Albert G. Varjabedian" but changed his name to "Albert G. Tutor" before 1943.

According to naturalization paperwork from 1943, Albert Tutor stood 5-feet, 4-and-1/2-inches tall, weighed 150 pounds, and had hazel eyes, brown hair and a fair complexion. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation National Archives at Riverside; Riverside, California; NAI Number: 594890; Record Group Title: 21; Record Group Number: Records of District Courts of the United States, 1685-2009, accessed 10/24/2018.)

Albert was a staunch Republican, having registered in that party in each election from 1944 until 1962. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation California State Library; Sacramento, California; Great Register of Voters, 1900-1968, accessed 10/23/2018.)