About

The History of Reed Brothers Dodge is Virtually the History of the American Automobile Business

If you wanted to read the history of the American car industry, a great place to start would be the history of Reed Brothers Dodge.

Welcome to Reed Brothers Dodge History 1915-2012. My name is Jeanne Gartner and I am the author of this blog. Lewis Reed, the founder of Reed Brothers Dodge was my grandfather. This blog was started in May 2012, and is inspired by, created for, and dedicated to Lewis Reed whose legacy started over 100 years ago.

When Lewis Reed opened his car dealership in October 1915, he never knew he was starting a family tradition that would be carried out for 97 years and  three generations. He founded what would become the oldest Dodge dealership under the same family ownership in the state of Maryland, and one of the oldest in the entire nation.

Business longevity is something to celebrate and share. On this blog, readers will find an historic timeline that showcases the company’s history, how Reed Brothers Dodge came into being, and how the company overcame the inevitable changes and challenges throughout almost a century of being in business.

Lewis Reed was also a well-known photographer in Montgomery County and picked up the hobby of photography even before automobiles were around. This blog provides a century of knowledge and detailed information extending beyond the automobile. You will find an extensive collection of photographs taken by Lewis Reed from historical locations in Maryland, Washington, DC and Virginia, most of which are more than 100 years old. The blog serves as a vehicle of late Modern History, from the later stages of the Industrial and Machine Ages, the Great World Wars, Post Modernism and into the Age of Information and Multimedia. Many of Lewis Reed’s photographs are now part of the Montgomery County Historical Society photo archives.

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Blog Available for Amazon Kindle Users!

In my pursuit to make Reed Brothers Dodge History more accessible to our readers, you now have the option of reading this blog on your Kindle device through Kindle Publishing. Kindle blogs are auto-delivered wirelessly to your device so you can stay up-to-date throughout the day.

You can find the link to subscribe here. You will receive a 14-day free trial when you initially subscribe, and if you enjoy the service, just $0.99 per month will allow you Kindle access to all of our content.

Get Reed Brothers Dodge History… in a Book

In September 2012, I created a self-published book version of this blog, entitled “Portrait of An Automobile Dealer”. In short, it’s an updated and chronologically ordered version of this blog. A second edition was published in place of the first edition, which was released on November 22, 2013. Now, the third and final edition is available through Blurb.com print-on-demand bookstore. If you would like to check out the hard copy book or purchase a copy, please visit: http://www.blurb.com/b/8514165-portrait-of-an-automobile-dealer-third-edition

Get Lewis Reed’s Photograph Collection… in a Book

My second book, “Lewis Reed Photograph Collection (1898-1960)” is now available through Blurb.com print-on-demand bookstore. The book contains 374 pages and 2500+ photographs, the majority of them more than 100 years old, taken by Lewis Reed, founder of Reed Brothers Dodge. It has informative captions throughout that provide small snippets of history on the people and places pictured. If you would like to check out the hard copy book or purchase a copy, please visit: http://www.blurb.com/b/8936686-lewis-reed-photograph-collection-1898-1960

For a detailed and comprehensive history visit our Historic Timeline page.