News & Media

Online Exhibit: Montgomery County, Then and Now: Photography of Lewis Reed and Barry Gartner

Opened December 6, 2023
Curated by Jeanne Gartner and Sarah Hedlund

Montgomery History’s newest online exhibit, “Montgomery County, Then and Now: Photography of Lewis Reed and Barry Gartner” is now live! In the early 1900s, photographer Lewis Reed captured hundreds of images throughout Montgomery County, featuring iconic structures, streetscapes, homes, and towns. Over one hundred years later, Reed’s grandson Barry Gartner has recreated dozens of his grandfather’s pictures, working in the county’s modern-day landscape. Regions represented include Rockville, Gaithersburg, Darnestown, Germantown, and more. The exhibit presents the pairs of photos side by side, with historical context and Google maps location pins for reference, illustrating in some cases timeless constancy and in many cases radical change.

History Conversations: Montgomery County, Then and Now: Photography of Lewis Reed and Barry Gartner

with Jeanne Gartner, Barry Gartner, and Sarah Hedlund December 5, 2023

The creators of Montgomery History’s upcoming online exhibit, “Montgomery County, Then and Now: Photography of Lewis Reed and Barry Gartner” discuss the fascinating process of recreating historical photographs. The exhibit will present pairs of photos side by side, illustrating in some cases timeless constancy and in many cases radical change. In this presentation, Sarah will talk with Jeanne and Barry about how this project was conceived and executed, providing historical context and behind-the-scenes stories about creating this new online exhibit.

Lewis Reed Photos Featured on WETA’s “If You Lived Here” Rockville

Lewis Reed’s photos were featured on a historical segment of “If You Lived Here” series on Rockville that aired on December 4, 2023 on WETA. While in Rockville, viewers learn about the history of Rockville, Maryland and the town’s transformation after World War II.

Then & Now Spotlight in Montgomery Magazine

Reed Brothers Dodge is very proud and honored to be featured in the month of August/September 2022 Montgomery Magazine “Then & Now” section. Montgomery Magazine is a bi-monthly lifestyle magazine that celebrates the people, places and history of Montgomery County, Maryland.

Lewis Reed Photos Appeared in Film Premiere

Several of Lewis Reed’s photographs appeared in the premiere screening of The Three (Known) Lynchings of Montgomery County, Maryland that was held Sunday, November 15, 2020 at a virtual event sponsored by the Montgomery County Lynching Memorial Project.

2020 Peerless Rockville/Glenview Mansion Speaker Series

I was very honored for the invitation to speak about the history of Reed Brothers Dodge for the Peerless Rockville/Glenview Mansion Speaker Series on Thursday, October 8, 2020. The lecture was presented online via WebEx due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Online Exhibit: Montgomery County, 1900-1930: Through the Lens of Lewis Reed

Opened January 7, 2020
Curated by Jeanne Gartner and Sarah Hedlund

Lewis Reed’s photographs are now a part of a series of online exhibitions featured on the Montgomery History website. Montgomery County, 1900-1930: Through the Lens of Lewis Reed displays extraordinary photographs in several themed categories (Transportation, Photo-magic, Recreation, Daily Life, and Community) taken at the beginning of the 20th century by county native and founder of Reed Brothers Dodge, Lewis Reed. It is an absolutely unique window into how the people of Montgomery County lived over a century ago. Working in collaboration with Montgomery History Librarian and Archivist, Sarah Hedlund, I am proud to play a part in the preservation of local history, making these photographs available to all.

Speaker: The 2019 Montgomery County History Conference

Each year in January, the Montgomery County Historical Society holds a day-long conference on various aspects of local history. Upwards of 200 people attend this annual event, which has been held since 2007. This year, I was very honored for the invitation to speak about the history of Reed Brothers Dodge at the Montgomery County History Conference on Saturday, January 26, 2019.

The PowerPoint presentation followed the dealerships 97-year historic timeline and included more than 100 photographs, 70 of them rare, historic images taken by the dealership’s founder, Lewis Reed. The conference was held at the Bioscience Education Center on Montgomery College’s Germantown Campus.

2016 Wagman Award for Historic Preservation Communication

On November 18, 2016, Peerless Rockville recognized blog author, Jeanne Gartner, with the Arthur M. Wagman Award for Historic Preservation Communication, for recording the history of Reed Brothers Dodge, a dealership, that had been in Rockville for over a century.

Peerless Rockville recognizes Jeanne Gartner for launching the book and blog on the history of Reed Brothers Dodge. Jeanne is the granddaughter of Lewis Reed, who along with his brother Edgar, founded Reed Brothers Dodge. The dealership was established in 1915, less than one year after the first Dodge Model-30 rolled off the assembly line for $785. A family-owned business that endured two World Wars and the Great Depression, the local dealership paralleled the American Automobile Industry. Reed Brothers provided “wheels” to many Rockville families for most of the Twentieth century. The website continues to provide a century of knowledge and detailed information extending beyond the automobile. It 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.

Lewis Reed Photo on Discovery’s Science Channel

A Lewis Reed’s photo from the 1923 Rockville Fair Auto Races was a part of the Episode 4 ‘London Array’ Series of Impossible Engineering that was broadcast on Thursday, January 24, 2019 on Discovery’s Science Channel. The photograph was used on the program that featured a segment on the development of the race car.

Lewis Reed Photo Featured on Maryland Public Television (MPT)

Lewis Reed’s aerial photograph of entire original Reed Brothers Dodge dealership at the intersection of Veirs Mill Road and Rockville Pike was used in the Maryland Farm & Harvest series which was aired on December 18, 2018 at 7:00 pm on MPT. The photo illustrated what Rockville Pike looked like at the time, during a segment about 97-year-old farmer Charles Koiner who grew up in the Rockville area.

Adopt-a-Dodge: Supporting the Preservation of the Dodge Brothers Legacy

The author of this blog has “adopted” a Dodge car  — a 1925 Dodge Brothers Depot Hackney — one of the historic vehicles in the Meadow Brook Hall Dodge Brothers automobile collection. Meadow Brook Hall in Rochester Hills, Michigan was the estate of one of the world’s wealthiest and influential women of her time, Matilda Dodge Wilson. Matilda was the wife of John F. Dodge, co-founder of the Dodge Brothers Motor Car Company.

The inscription on the Adoption Certificate reads:

adopted by Jeanne Gartner in memory of her grandfather, Lewis Reed, who founded Reed Brothers Dodge in Rockville, Maryland in October 1915.

The vehicle was adopted for a period of one year, beginning November 14, 2017 through November 13, 2018 (November 14 is the anniversary of the day John and Horace Dodge revealed their first car in 1914). The adoption will help Meadow Brook Hall make necessary repairs, provide preventative maintenance and pay insurance for the Depot Hack, ensuring it’s there to inspire, educate and “drive” this and future generations. Lewis Reed is a perfect and most fitting parent.

Lewis Reed Photo in PBS Documentary

Reed Brothers Dodge a Designated “Peerless Place”

October 2015: Along with St. Mary’s Church (1813), King Farm (1925), Red Brick Courthouse (1891), and the B&O Railroad Station (1873), Reed Brothers Dodge (1915) was designated as a “Peerless Place” by Rockville’s Historic Preservation organization.

American Pickers Hits Reed Brothers Dodge History Blog!

The television show, American Pickers, that’s watched by about 2.7 million people on the History Channel each week “picked” Reed Brothers Dodge History blog! A 1927 photograph of Reed Brothers Dodge was used on the TV Show “American Pickers” Season 7, Episode 34: “Can’t Catch a Break” when pickers Mike and Frank found an old Dodge Brothers sign. Mike explained a bit of the history of the Dodge Brothers company and used the Reed Brothers Dodge photograph during his explanation. The episode was aired on Wednesday, October 21, 2015 on The History Channel at 9:00 EST.

Reed Brothers Dodge Featured in Norris-Banonis Automotive Calendar

Several photographs of Reed Brothers Dodge went into the month of May 2015 Automotive Wall Calendar, “Broken Down Heroes“, which features a 1952 Dodge Coronet. The Norris-Banonis calendars have so much information in them, they are known as “coffee table books”. All of the calendars feature icons representing important dates in automotive history as they relate to the calendar.

“On the Go: Rockville Pike and Car Culture” by Peerless Rockville

In April 2015, as a part of Peerless Rockville’s “On the Go: Rockville Pike and Car Culture” lecture series, Peerless Rockville Historian, Dr Teresa Lachin offered a glimpse into the history of Reed Brothers Dodge as one of the City’s oldest and longest lasting automobile businesses. Reed Brothers Dodge operated from two locations on Rockville Pike for over 97 years.