Then & Now: Reed Brothers Dodge and the Changing Face of Rockville

The story of Reed Brothers Dodge is also the story of how Rockville and Montgomery County grew up around the automobile. Through the lens of founder Lewis Reed, we can watch that transformation unfold one frame at a time.

THEN: A Corner Garage on a Dirt Road

In the early 1900s, Rockville was still very much a rural crossroads. When Lewis Reed opened his original Rockville Garage in 1915 at the intersection of Veirs Mill Road and Rockville Pike, the scene looked nothing like the busy corridor we know today.

THEN: 1917 Rockville Garage, later expanded with a two-story addition. A Texaco Filling Station sign is visible alongside a Texaco petroleum fuel truck servicing the single pump out front.

In the historic photograph, you can see:

• An unpaved Rockville Pike, more dirt than road, stretching into the distance.​
• Trolley tracks running past the garage, part of the transit line that connected Rockville to Washington, D.C. from 1900 to 1935.​
• A simple building front with “Dodge Brothers Motor Vehicles” signage, more workshop than showroom.

It was a modest operation by modern standards, but it represented something new: a dedicated place in town for motorists to buy, fuel, and service their automobiles. At a time when horse‑drawn wagons still shared the road, Reed Brothers Dodge stood at the frontier of a new way of moving through the world.

NOW: From Quiet Crossroads to “Mixing Bowl”

Stand in the same spot today and it is almost hard to believe it is the same place. The once‑quiet junction has evolved into what locals now refer to as “the mixing bowl,” a complex web of roads, traffic signals, and near‑constant traffic.​

NOW: Veterans Park occupies the former Reed Brothers Dodge corner at Rockville’s “mixing bowl,” a small green refuge with flags and pathways set against the backdrop of constant traffic and busy highways.

Where the original Reed Brothers building once stood, the landscape has cycled through multiple lives:

• In the decades that followed, the busy crossroads gave way to highway progress, as road‑widening projects in the 1960s and 1970s carved away much of the original Reed Brothers property.
• The once‑bustling dealership site was gradually transformed into what is now Veterans Park.
• With the demolition of the dealership building in 1970, nearly half a century of automotive history at that corner came to a close, leaving only photographs and memories to mark its presence.

Today, the same view is dominated by multi‑lane roads, turning lanes, and signage, where there were once dirt streets, trolleys, and the old Rockville Fairgrounds just across the Pike.

A Dealership That Grew with Its Community

Reed Brothers Dodge did not stand still while the roads changed. Founded in 1915, the family business survived World War I, the Great Depression, World War II, recessions, and Chrysler’s financial crises of the 1970s and 1980s.

Key milestones include:

• Expansion from a small corner garage into a full Dodge dealership as automobile ownership grew.
• Construction of a new showroom and service building at East Montgomery Avenue and what would later be named Dodge Street in the 1940s.​
• A major relocation in 1970 to a modern facility at 15955 Frederick Road in front of the Shady Grove Metro, complete with contemporary showroom and full service complex.

By the time the dealership closed in 2012, Reed Brothers Dodge had operated in Rockville for more than 97 years, making it the longest‑running automobile dealership in Montgomery County history.

This single pair of images is just one chapter in a much larger visual record. Lewis Reed’s photographs capture everyday life across Maryland and beyond from 1898 through 1960. Many of these scenes can still be recognized today if you know where to look, even as roads have widened, buildings have vanished, and new neighborhoods have emerged. You can explore the entire “Then & Now” series with Lewis Reed’s photographs here: https://reedbrothersdodgehistory.com/category/then-now/.