Senate Resolution No. 10: A Historic Tribute to Lewis Reed and Reed Brothers Dodge

On February 8, 1967, the Senate of Maryland adopted Senate Resolution No. 10 to honor the life and legacy of Lewis Reed, founder of Reed Brothers Dodge, following his passing at the age of 79. This single-page resolution, recorded in the official proceedings of the Senate, recognized not only his long career in the automobile business, but also his broader contributions to the civic and economic life of Montgomery County.​

Senate Resolution No. 10, adopted by the Senate of Maryland on February 8, 1967, honoring the life and achievements of Lewis Reed, founder of Reed Brothers Dodge.

Lewis Reed’s story begins in October 1915, when he opened a new automobile agency in Rockville and chose to represent the then-young Dodge Brothers Motor Car Company. At that moment, Dodge had been producing automobiles for less than a year, yet Reed saw its potential and became the first Dodge dealer in Montgomery County and the earliest in the state of Maryland. This pioneering decision anchored a business that would endure for generations, evolving from the era of dirt roads and hand-cranked engines into the age of modern highways and high-compression engines.​

Over the next five decades, Reed Brothers Dodge weathered profound change: two world wars, the Great Depression, postwar expansion, and the transformation of Rockville from a small town into a busy suburban center. Through these shifts, the dealership gained a reputation for fair dealing, continuity of family ownership, and steadfast adherence to the Dodge ideal of “𝘋𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘢𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺.” Customers often returned across decades and generations, treating Reed Brothers as a trusted local institution rather than just a place to buy and service automobiles.​

Yet Lewis Reed’s influence extended beyond the showroom floor. He was also one of Montgomery County’s earliest and most devoted photographers, documenting streetscapes, parades, farms, people, and everyday scenes that might otherwise have vanished without a trace. His images, many taken in and around Rockville, now serve as a visual time capsule, preserving a detailed record of the county’s transformation across the first half of the 20th century. In recognizing Lewis Reed, the Senate was, in effect, honoring both a businessman and an unofficial historian of the community.​

Senate Resolution No. 10 is significant because it places Lewis Reed and Reed Brothers Dodge within the formal historical record of the State of Maryland. It acknowledges that a local automobile dealer, by virtue of long service, integrity, and civic commitment, could shape the character and memory of a place just as surely as a public official or institution. For those interested in local history, early motoring, or the story of Rockville’s growth, the resolution provides a brief but powerful summation of why Lewis Reed’s name still matters. He remains the only automobile dealer in Maryland to receive such recognition by a Senate resolution.