Some photographs simply capture a moment. Others capture an entire world.

New Cover – Second Edition. An expanded 384-page volume featuring more than 2,500 historic photographs preserved by Lewis Reed, many published for the first time. A remarkable visual record of the early 20th century.

I am pleased to announce the release of the Second Edition of the Lewis Reed Photograph Collection (1898–1960), an expanded and refined visual archive documenting over six decades of life, landscape, and community in Montgomery County, Maryland and the surrounding Mid-Atlantic region.

More than a century ago, Lewis Reed began photographing the towns, farms, roads, and people around him with a camera and a deep curiosity about a world in rapid transition. What began as the hobby of a young motorcycle enthusiast traveling the back roads of Maryland soon grew into one of the most remarkable visual records of the region’s history.

Many of the photographs in this collection were created from glass-plate negatives and early prints; preserving rural crossroads, bustling town centers, early automobiles sharing roads with horse-drawn wagons, and landscapes that look entirely different today. These are images that might otherwise have been lost to time.

What’s New in the Second Edition

This expanded edition presents Lewis Reed’s photographs in thematic sections that highlight the full breadth of his work; from Maryland towns and landscapes to family portraits, travel scenes, and the early history of Reed Brothers Dodge, which Lewis founded in Rockville in 1915. The collection draws from more than 2,500 digitized photographs, each carefully researched to identify the places and people they depict.

Many images were identified through long conversations with Lewis Reed’s daughter, Mary Jane Reed Gartner, whose recollections helped bring these photographs back to life and restore the stories behind them.

Lewis Reed is remembered locally as the founder of Reed Brothers Dodge, but photography was a lifelong passion alongside his business career. His images document everything from the C&O Canal in operation to small-town parades, churches, farms, and early roadways. Taken together, they form one of the most extensive visual archives of Montgomery County during the period when rural communities were giving way to the modern suburban landscape we know today.

A Note on Pricing

This is a photo-intensive volume, approaching four hundred pages, and is printed on demand through Blurb.com, meaning each copy is produced individually rather than in large commercial print runs. The pricing reflects the actual cost of producing such a large photographic archive. This project was created primarily to preserve and share Lewis Reed’s historic photographs, not as a commercial publication.

Get Your Copy

The Lewis Reed Photograph Collection (1898–1960), Second Edition is available now through Blurb.com’s print-on-demand bookstore.

👉 Purchase your copy here

Or visit the collection page for more information: reedbrothersdodgehistory.com 

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