Tag Archive | glass plates
May 18, 2012  

Historic Photo

The following photograph taken by Lewis Reed is from the “Wheelmen (and associates), 1890s-1910s” blog post by the Montgomery County Historical Society’s official blog, “A Fine Collection”.

A bicycle race at the Rockville fairgrounds, circa 1915. Photo by Lewis Reed; glass negatives donated by the Reed and Gartner families.

With photography for a hobby, one that began even before automobiles were around Montgomery County, Lewis Reed had amassed a large library of photographs of buildings, farm carts drawn by oxen, and other historic spots in Montgomery County. Lewis Reed’s daughter, Mary Jane Gartner, recently donated her father’s photograph collection of 280 glass plate negatives to the Montgomery County Historical Society. The glass plate negatives from Lewis Reed’s Collection are a great example of early photographic techniques which were in common use between the 1880s and the late 1920s.

May 10, 2012  

Glass Plate Negatives Donation

Print made from a Lewis Reed glass negative, showing the Reed Brothers dealership in 1922.

The following is an excerpt taken from the Summer 2011 edition 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.”