New Car Showroom, c. 1920s
1920 Dodge Showroom
This new car showroom at Reed Brothers Dodge is filled with late 1920s Dodge Brothers new car models. The high ceilings and mezzanine floor gives an air of elegance to the showroom and the expanse of windows on the front extends the full width of the building. The showroom faced the triangle at Veirs Mill Road and Rockville Pike (now known as Veterans Park) which gave the dealership maximum visibility to the largest volume of cross traffic. Behind the large plate glass windows and an awning above was the product — the new car. (click image to enlarge)
In the background under the column arch is the Bookkeeper’s desk, who at the time was Arthur Watkins. The upper floor mezzanine housed the dealership’s Parts Department and storage area. Leo (Pat) Murray started in 1925 and was the Parts Department Manager. Pat worked at Reed Brothers for more than 21 years. To the right of the stairs was Evelyn Beane’s desk, Reed Brothers’ administrative secretary.
To the left of the stairs is the Gulf Gasoline service counter displaying various supplies. Reed Brothers Dodge was the first Gulf gasoline dealer in the Washington, D.C. area. In 1915, they began selling gas at their original location at the triangle at Veirs Mill Road and Rockville Pike. In addition to gas, they carried a full line of Gulf lubricants, Goodyear tires, Willard batteries, complimentary road maps, free air and water, and many other well known brands of merchandise.
The showroom led to the Service Department at the rear of the building which was how new cars were moved in and out of the showroom. There were 2-3 additional offices in the back of the showroom. One belonged to Edgar Reed (Lewis’ brother) who was generally in charge of the “front end” of the business; new car and truck sales. The other office belonged to Lewis Reed, who was never known to spend a lot of time in his office sitting behind a desk. He could always be found in the “back end” of the business; Service, Parts and Body Shop.
There were no salesman’s desks in the showroom until after World War II. Lewis Reed allotted specific sales territory to his salesmen in four different directions from the dealership. The salesmen spent all day in the outlying areas of Poolesville, Rockville, Barnesville and Spencerville demonstrating cars to potential customers. At that time, Reed Brothers was selling about eight new cars a month and most sales resulted from knocking on people’s doors. It was direct person to person sales contact, relationship building and trust – all built and sealed on a handshake. Three of the four salesmen at the time were Francis O. Day, Raleigh S. Chinn and Benjamin J. Thompson. Benjamin Thompson of Colesville joined Reed Brothers in 1917 as Salesman and stayed for 30+ years. Raleigh S. Chinn of Rockville started as Salesman with Reed Brothers in 1920.
Featured Photo: Hand-Cranked Car
Lewis Reed hand cranking an old car. The license plate is MD 10307 dated 1913.
Today, we take the starting of automobiles for granted. Simply place the key in the ignition, turn, and VROOM, the engine starts.
However, this was not always the case. Cars in the early parts of the century had to be started by hand. This was accomplished by turning a crank, usually located in the front of the automobile. When the crank was turned, it moved the pistons in the automobile’s engine until enough momentum was built up to keep the engine going on its own. Hand cranking was also physically demanding making it very difficult for anyone with a small stature to start the engine.
By 1920, nearly all manufacturers were producing cars equipped with starters making it easy for anyone, regardless of physical abilities, to start a car by pressing a button mounted on the dash or floor. An ignition on and starter engage switch operated by a key was introduced by Chrysler in 1949.
Reed Brothers Texaco Filling Station
The 1917 photo below is the Reed Brothers original Rockville Garage located at the intersection of Veirs Mill Road and Rockville Pike. To the right is a Texaco Gasoline Filling Station sign. One very tall Texaco branded fuel pump can be seen in this photo along with two Texaco Petroleum refueling trucks. The gas pump globe on the top advertizes the gas company name and logo. Parked in front is a line-up of some very early Dodge Brothers Motor Vehicles.
Also visible in the photo are trolley tracks that went along Rockville Pike and Montgomery Avenue to Laird Street and back again. From 1900 – 1935, the trolley cars went past Reed Brothers Dodge as they traveled up Rockville Pike.
At some point between prior to 1920, Reed Brothers Dodge changed over from selling Texaco and became a Gulf Gasoline dealer. Reed Brothers had the first Gulf gas station in the still-rural Washington D.C. area. (click on images to enlarge)
1917 Original Rockville Garage with 2 story addition. Note the Texaco Filling Station signage and the Texaco Petroleum fuel truck refilling the single pump in front.
Below, a Texaco Petroleum tanker is delivering its load of fuel to Reed Brothers in this circa 1917 photo. The delivery driver seems to be wearing his best suit on this job, something that you don’t see these days at all.
Texaco was founded in Beaumont, Texas as the Texas Fuel Company in 1901. A circa 1917 Texaco Petroleum Truck sits in front of Reed Brothers Dodge after delivering its load of fuel.
This Gasoline Filling Station sign is from the teens and is the same logo seen in the photo above.
New Milestone: 20K Page Views
Just a quick post with an offering of thanks to all of you who have read this blog. This evening it hit 20,000 page views, a little over 12 months into its creation.
I’m extremely proud of what this blog has accomplished thus far, and I hope to continue reaching new people as time goes on.
I would also like to take this opportunity to offer a special thank you to Hemmings Daily blogger Daniel Strohl, who posted a link to our Historic Timeline on their own blog which helped boost our page views – Four-Links – NYC cop car show, Reed Brothers Dodge history, coachbuilder Mark Nugent, microcars in the Pacific Northwest written by Daniel Strohl June 22, 2013.
Thank you to everyone who visits us from all around the world…we have so far been visited by folks from all fifty of the United States and 114 different countries world wide.
I’m seriously blown away by the momentum this blog has carried in the way of page views over the past few months. But this blog wouldn’t exist, no matter how great the ideals behind it and no matter how much drive I had to share them, if it weren’t for our readers.
One Year, 43 Posts & Thank You
Today marks the one-year anniversary of this blog. Thank you for your patronage, support, and comments over the past year. It’s been an honor to share the history of Reed Brothers Dodge – whether you’ve read our blog, followed us on Twitter, or “liked” us on Facebook. I would like to also thank those mentioned below, and many others, for their kind words and the visibility they have provided.
To help review the past year I thought I’d search around on the Internet and see what others have been saying about us.
Included among the posts on our Facebook page:
National Capital Trolley Museum shared a photo from Lewis Reed’s collection. August 6, 2012. “We’re delighted to see Reed Brothers Dodge History has become a fan of ours on Facebook. Here’s an image of the Reed Brothers themselves riding the trolley to Rockville, about the time the business was founded. Image in collection of, and hosted by, Peerless Rockville Historic Preservation Ltd.”
The Hermitage “You have no idea how long I’ve been waiting to see a photo of the Pigeon Bridge on Veirs Mill! My dad used to give his parents a heart attack by walking atop the span when he was a kid (he always loved heights). Thank you so much for posting! Keep ’em coming!”
Other mentions online and in print:
- Blog Search Engine posted the following review:
“Reed Brothers Dodge History 1915 – 2012 is a blog dedicated to the family who founded and continue to run the Reed Brothers Dodge, a car dealership in Rockville, Maryland.
This family-run business has been in operation for almost a century, a feat that certainly is not common in the world of business today. More than talking about cars, dealership, and business, this blog also brings history alive. The blog is run by Jeanne Gartner, the granddaughter of Lewis Reed, the founder of the business.
She continues to keep the memory of her predecessors alive by documenting the past. Reading the blog is like taking a walk down history. Not only do you get to learn about firsts in the business, but you also get to take a peek into the lives of those who have gone before us.
It’s a family memoir of sorts, but you also see a story that is worth to be read by everyone.”
- The Montgomery County Historical Society (Maryland) listed our blog under the History & Resources section of their website, entitled “Other Local History on the Web“.
- Joanna Church, Director of Collections and author of “A Fine Collection”, the official blog of the Montgomery County Historical Society (Maryland), credited an historic photo by Lewis Reed on her post Railroad “Quarterly Commutation Ticket,” 1915
- At the Beall-Dawson House February 2 – May 5, 2013, The Montgomery County Historical Society presented an exhibit, “History, Memory, Artifact, Art: Photographs of Everyday Life” which included many of Lewis Reed’s photos and original negatives.
- Maryland Automobile Dealers Association: A photograph of Lewis Reed and his Rockville Garage has been printed on page 4 of the FALL 2010 edition of MADAs “In Gear“ publication. The photo was taken in 1916 showing two of the original owners of the Rockville Garage — Lewis Reed and Griffith Warfield. The full photograph is shown again at the top of page 14 with all three of the original owners. The photo is also displayed at the top of Maryland Automobile Dealers Association’s home page.
- The website Gaithersburg: Then & Now authored by local historian Shaun Curtis placed a link to “Reed Brothers Dodge History 1915-2012″ blog under the Local Historic Sites & Information section of their website.
- Peerless Rockville has placed a link to “Reed Brothers Dodge History 1915-2012” blog under the Resources section of their website.
- Blog Catalog Review: “Interesting blog with wonderful historic photos and a well-written chronicle of a successful automotive franchise that began in Maryland in the early 20th-century and continues today. Even if you’ve never been to Rockville or Maryland, you can appreciate the photos and history, a snapshot of America.”
- The following is an excerpt taken from the Summer 2011 edition, page 6 of the Montgomery County Historical Society Newsletter. “The Sween Library was recently given a collection of 280 glass plate negatives, showing Montgomery County in the early 20th century. Lewis Reed was a well-known photographer in the county as well as owner (along with his brother Edgar) of Reed Brothers, the Rockville automobile dealership. The collection was donated to the Society by Mr. Reed’s daughter, Mary Jane Reed Gartner. There are scenes of different areas of the county, buildings, events such as the county fair, and local people. These are a welcomed addition to our growing graphics collection.”
And then there’s Twitter…
Reed Brothers received numerous re-tweets and mentions on Twitter, the most notable from the official Twitter feed of the Montgomery County Police Department on a photo of the first known picture of the entire MCPD at a Celebration on July 4, 1922 in front of Reed Brothers Dodge.
@mcpnews – We love this photo! Thank You for sharing!
@Tri-Auto – Big shoutout to @reedbrothers for posting so many cool historical things.
@BoundaryStones, WETA’s Local History Blog – Nice snippet of early auto history in #MoCo, . Like many dealerships, @reedbrothers grew out of existing garage.
@BoundaryStones, WETA’s Local History Blog – @reedbrothers Nice local history blog!
A heartfelt note to all those who have stopped in for a look and a read.
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Copyright Notice
Reed Brothers Dodge History (1915-2012) by Jeanne Gartner is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License.
Reed Brothers Dodge History 1915 – 2012 
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