Done
South San Francisco, CA, United States
Auction Details
Frances E. Tarzian Antique Car Collection
Antique Car Collection
Francis Tarzian was born in 1929 and raised in New Jersey. His father, born en route while his grandmother was emigrating to America, was a stonemason who was adamant that his son Francis follow in his career footsteps. Young Francis, however, had other ideas: at age 17 - and with his mother's permission - he ran away to join the U.S. Navy for several years. There he pursued his trade of choice, becoming a master machinist, and serving in the Korean War on the escort carrier USS Sicily.
vIn 1955, Francis married Vennetta Harding, then began their family of five children: Francis Jr., Rebecca, Nathan, Lydia, and Gregory. In 1969, the family moved to Los Altos in Northern California. During that time, Mr. Tarzian worked for NASA's Ames Research Center on the Polaris missile project. One noteworthy career achievement was his development of the fittings that connect hoses to the space suits of astronauts.
While Mr. Tarzian had a lifelong fascination with all things mechanical, his interest in restoring cars began in 1953 when he purchased a 1921 Ford Model T Center Door Sedan. This automobile was recovered from a barn in New Jersey on property that was in the path of interstate highway construction and seized by eminent domain. This first restoration project, one that Vennetta participated in as the young couple was courting,
was completed in the mid-1950s. It was also in 1953 that Mr. Tarzian joined the Antique Automobile Club of America (AACA), where he became the founding member and first president of the Foothills (CA) Region. Today the AACA organization boasts over 55,000 members and 350 regional chapters.
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