Graham Brothers Trucks
In the 1920s Reed Brothers sold Dodge Brothers Motor Cars and Graham Brothers Trucks
History fascinates me, and something about the development of the Dodge pickup truck fascinates me even more. It’s a story inextricably linked to our country’s history like baseball and apple pie.
After the introduction of mass-produced automobiles, people started to modify their vehicles for enhanced utility. These people stripped off the rear bodywork and mounted open-topped boxes that resembled the first step towards the modern pickup truck.
Dodge trucks actually began with three brothers named Graham. In reality, it is the story of two companies – the Dodge Brothers Company and the Graham Brothers Company. In 1916, seeing the need for a good, dependable truck to serve people such as themselves, the Graham brothers entered the truck body business. By 1919, they had produced the “Truck-builder,” which is a basic platform from which a customer could spec a truck according to his or her needs. The Truck Builder was essentially a truck conversion that began with a passenger car. The Truck Builder worked this way: The new-car dealer would sell a new car to a customer, then suggest to the buyer that his old car could be converted into a truck.
In 1921, Dodge Brothers began to market Graham Brothers medium-duty trucks through its dealerships; in turn, every Graham vehicle utilized a Dodge engine. This partnership provided Dodge dealers with a full line of trucks to sell in addition to the highly regarded Dodge passenger cars, and the resulting sales increases prompted Dodge to buy the Graham Brothers Company.
The Dodge trucks would carry the Graham Brothers nameplate until 1928 with a few of the designs lasting as long as the 1930s.
Rockville Garage, 1918 – Hudson Super Six, Oldsmobile, and Dodge Brothers Motor Cars on display at Rockville Fairgrounds. Lewis Reed is seated in the drivers seat of the Rockville Garage Graham Brothers Service Truck.
Source: Allpar
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. Since 2012, the book has been updated to a 2nd edition. More than 60+ pages of additional content and over 100 new photographs were added to the second edition. A third, and final edition, is currently in progress and will be released later this year.
In this book, readers will find an historic timeline that showcases the company’s 95-year 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. The book conveys an abundance of unique automotive related content as well as a family business history that parallels the evolution of the Dodge automobile.
“Portrait Of An Automobile Dealer” Second 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/4790280-portrait-of-an-automobile-dealer-second-edition. To see the book full screen (highly recommended), click on the button just to the left of the blue “blurb” icon. (The pages turn by clicking the tabs on the left and right of the book.)
As a special thank you to all the readers of this blog, this book has been placed online for everyone to enjoy for free. To download the complimentary eBook formatted for Apple iPad and iPhone click here.
Note: this book is not marked up for profit; but sold at base price.
Silver Anniversary (1915-1940)
In 1940, Reed Brothers Dodge celebrated its 25th Anniversary.
1940 – Lewis Reed (2nd from right) receives Dodge Silver Anniversary Award
The inscription on the plaque below reads as follows:
Know All Men By These Presents That
Reed Brothers
has, for 25 years remained in continuous business association with Dodge, in recognition whereof we have caused to be issued this 25th Anniversary token.
Signed by Forest H. Akers, Vice President & Director of Sales. The seal on the bottom is the Dodge Brothers Motor Cars logo. The top of the plaque displays a vertical panel bearing a male figure facing rear with a hammer cutting the word “Dependability” across; below the arm, A Word, A Fact, A Tradition. In the background is an image of the Dodge Brothers Hamtramck factory.
Plaque is a silver scroll mounted on highly polished wood
Reed Brothers Dodge Featured in May 2015 Norris-Banonis Automotive Calendar
Reed Brothers is very proud and honored to be featured in the month of May 2015 Norris-Banonis Automotive wall calendar, “Broken Down Heroes”. “Broken Down Heroes”, a name that comes from the Jack Kerouac novel “On the Road,” is a product that Bob Christy has been working on since 1998, and has an extensive collection of images, ranging from a 1918 Willys-Overland to a 1969 VW Bug.
2015 Broken Down Heroes Cover
The top part of the calendar features Bob Christy’s photo of an old abandoned 1952 Dodge Coronet resting under a tree just south of Columbus, Ohio. (click on calendar image below twice to enlarge). The main part of the calendar features a photograph of Lewis Reed and a small snippet of history.
1915: Lewis Reed opened a Dodge Dealership in Rockville, Maryland. When his brother Edgar returns home from WWI, he gives him 1/3 interest. Eventually, the Reed Brothers will carry Hudson, Oldsmobile, Goodyear Tires, and General Electric Appliances. They will also open the first Gulf brand gasoline station in the area.
At the bottom of the calendar, there is a photo of the 1936 Reed Brothers Dodge canopied Gulf Gas Station and Lewis Reed’s original 1915 Rockville Garage.
For the trivia buff and historians, special dates in automotive history is included throughout. For each featured vehicle, the period dealership information and advertisements are included. These unique calendars also include the Norris-Banonis Group trademarked “U-Auto-Know” facts and details that set them apart from any other calendar on the market.
The calendar is available for purchase on Norris-Banonis.com or on Amazon.com.
Feature – “On the Go: Rockville Pike and Car Culture” by Peerless Rockville
It was 100 years ago that Lewis Reed signed a franchise agreement with brothers Horace and John Dodge in Detroit. Since then, the business that Lewis Reed founded grew and transformed into Rockville’s oldest family-owned and operated Dodge dealership.
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 97 years.
Pictured below is the brochure of the “On the Go: Rockville Pike and Car Culture” lecture series. (click images to enlarge)
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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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