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From Rockville to Gaithersburg: The Montgomery County Fair Through the Lens of Lewis Reed

Special Feature for Montgomery County Agricultural Fair Week
August 14–22, 2026
A look back at the fair’s early years through the lens of Lewis Reed.

Every August, hundreds of thousands of visitors flock to the Montgomery County Agricultural Fair to enjoy livestock exhibitions, agricultural displays, carnival rides, competitions, concerts, and family traditions that have endured for generations. While today’s fairgrounds in Gaithersburg are familiar to many, the fair itself began long before the current site existed.

Organized in 1846 by the Montgomery County Agricultural Society, the annual fair was established to promote agriculture, encourage innovation, and strengthen the county’s farming community. For decades, it brought together farmers, merchants, craftsmen, and families from across Montgomery County to exchange ideas, exhibit their finest livestock and crops, and celebrate the region’s agricultural heritage.

By the time Lewis Reed began photographing Montgomery County around the turn of the twentieth century, the fair had become one of the county’s largest and most anticipated annual events. Carrying his camera throughout the fairgrounds, Reed documented not only the exhibits and attractions but also the people who made the fair an enduring community tradition.

Fairgoers stroll along the midway in their Sunday best, ca. 1910. Broad-brimmed hats, long flowing dresses, and tailored suits reflected the fashion of the era, when dressing for the county fair was as much a social occasion as the event itself.

Reed’s photographs reveal a fair that was both educational and entertaining. Agriculture remained its foundation, but visitors also came to enjoy the excitement of the midway, where amusement rides, games, and food vendors transformed the fairgrounds into a festive gathering place for young and old alike.

Ferris Wheel at the Montgomery County Fair, Rockville, ca. 1910. One of the fair’s most popular attractions towered above the fairgrounds, symbolizing how the annual exhibition combined agricultural traditions with modern entertainment.

Behind the excitement of the midway was the fair’s original purpose. Exhibition halls displayed the county’s finest produce, flowers, baked goods, preserves, and handcrafted items, while nearby barns housed prize-winning livestock representing the best of Montgomery County’s farms. Manufacturers exhibited the latest farm machinery and equipment, giving visitors an opportunity to see how new technology was steadily transforming rural life.

Agricultural and various farm equipment exhibits, 1910

Agriculture remained the heart of the fair. Manufacturers displayed the latest farm machinery, giving local farmers an opportunity to compare new equipment and modern farming methods.

Visitors explored displays celebrating Montgomery County’s agricultural achievements, local craftsmanship, and community pride.

An exhibitor captures the attention of fairgoers.

One of Lewis Reed’s most compelling photographs captures hundreds of automobiles parked throughout the fairgrounds. As a lifelong automobile enthusiast and future founder of Reed Brothers Dodge, Reed recognized that the motorcar was transforming Montgomery County. His photograph preserves that moment when the automobile had become an integral part of daily life and community gatherings.

Hundreds of cars in the parking lot.

The grandstand and one-third-mile dirt race track were among the fair’s most popular attractions. Horse racing remained a favorite event, while bicycle races, motorcycle exhibitions, and eventually automobile competitions reflected America’s growing fascination with speed and mechanical innovation. Reed’s photographs preserve these moments at a time when transportation itself was rapidly changing.

Bicycle races became very popular throughout the country and were a novel event at the Rockville Fairgrounds as early as 1915. The track was a half-mile dirt racing oval with wide, sweeping curves and a grandstand for spectators, which made for clear views. Notice the riders are in shirts and ties.

Harness racing was one of the main attractions at the race track before the introduction of the automobile and the subsequent popularity of racing cars.

Auto racetrack, Rockville Fair, August 1923

Spectators pack the grandstand for the automobile races at the Rockville Fair, August 25, 1923. Racing events drew visitors from across the region and showcased the excitement of the new motor age.

The Rockville fairgrounds continued to host the Montgomery County Fair until 1932, when financial hardships brought on by the Great Depression forced the Agricultural Society to sell the property. The site would later become the home of Richard Montgomery High School. In 1949, hundreds of volunteers joined together to establish the Montgomery County Agricultural Center in Gaithersburg, where the fair continues today.

Winter at the Rockville Fairgrounds, 1910. Lewis Reed’s photograph captures a rare, tranquil view of the fairgrounds between seasons, preserving a landscape that would eventually disappear from Montgomery County.

Much has changed since Lewis Reed walked the fairgrounds with his camera. The original race track has disappeared, the Rockville fairgrounds exist only in photographs, and Montgomery County has grown from a rural farming community into one of Maryland’s most populous counties. Yet the fair’s mission has remained remarkably consistent: celebrating agriculture, education, community, and innovation.

As visitors gather for this year’s Montgomery County Agricultural Fair, Lewis Reed’s photographs offer a rare opportunity to look back at the fair’s early years and experience a tradition that has united generations of Montgomery County residents for nearly 180 years.

August 4, 2018

Looking Back at the Montgomery County Fair, Whose Origins Stretch Back to 1846

It’s August, which means the Montgomery County Fair is coming soon! (The Agricultural Center’s website is literally counting down the seconds until opening day.) Since the fair will be here soon, I thought it would be fun and interesting to look back at some rare, historical photographs taken by Lewis Reed at the fair, whose origins stretch back 172 years.

All of these photographs are from the first incarnation of the Fair, held by the Montgomery County Agricultural Society (1846-1932) in Rockville and often known simply as the “Rockville Fair.” The current Fair, held at the Gaithersburg fairgrounds, was started in 1949. From the August 25, 1923 Washington Post Rockville Fair Auto Race article, to some of the earliest known photographs of the original grounds, Lewis Reed’s photos show the splendor of the original fairgrounds with its grandstands, to the oval dirt track used for bicycle, harness, and later, car races, and conversion to a baseball field.

Fair goers in their finest stroll along the midway. Hats were a fashion requirement at the time, as were long flowing dresses and suits. Photo by Lewis Reed, ca. 1910

The headline of the Washington Post article about the race read, “Auto Races to Clash at Rockville Today”.

World speed records will be placed in jeopardy at Rockville fair this afternoon when half score of professional drivers, including speedway and dirt track auto monarchs, will compete in a seven-event program.

The annual County Fair used to be held for four days in the month of August at the old Fairgrounds of Rockville, Maryland. Families came from every section of the Montgomery County in wagons and carriages, and stayed for the duration of the Fair. Like many fairgrounds, the Rockville Fairgrounds included an oval track. Fairground race tracks, typically one-mile or half-mile dirt racing ovals with wide, sweeping curves and grandstands for spectators, were easily adapted for bicycles, harness racing, and the sport of car racing. The fairgrounds were just outside Rockville, about where Richard Montgomery High School is today. As always, click the photos to get a better look.

Fairgrounds in the snow. Photo by Lewis Reed, ca. 1910

Chicken House. Photo by Lewis Reed, ca. 1910

Riding the Ferris Wheel at Rockville Fair, circa 1920s. Photo by Lewis Reed

Fair goers meander through exhibits. Photo by Lewis Reed, ca. 1910

Hundreds of cars parked in the fair parking lot. What is fascinating to me is, with all of these early cars painted in black, how on earth would you find your car? Photo by Lewis Reed, ca. 1910

View from the grandstand. Photo by Lewis Reed, ca. 1910

Families came in wagons and carriages to the Rockville Fairgrounds and stayed for the duration. Photo by Lewis Reed, ca. 1910

Can you hear me now? Photo by Lewis Reed, ca. 1910

Agricultural and various farm equipment exhibit. Photo by Lewis Reed, ca. 1910

Sign on the left side of the building reads, “The Beautiful Caverns of Luray Souvenirs”. Photo by Lewis Reed, ca. 1910

Bicycle Racing

Like many fairgrounds, the Rockville Fairgrounds included an oval track. Fairground race tracks, typically one-mile or half-mile dirt racing ovals with wide, sweeping curves and grandstands for spectators, were easily adapted for bicycles, harness racing, and the sport of car racing.

Rockville Fairgrounds Bicycle Races 1910

This circa 1915 photo of an early bicycle race at the Rockville Fairgrounds gives a sense of just how popular the sport was at the time. Photo by Lewis Reed

Harness Racing

Rockville Fairgrounds Harness Races 1910

Harness race at the Rockville Fair, circa 1910. All those throngs of people had plenty to see. Photo by Lewis Reed

This photo shows the grandstand and surrounding areas filled with spectators watching the action, ca. 1910. Photo by Lewis Reed

Crowd at the racetrack. Photo by Lewis Reed

Bend on the racetrack, circa 1910. Photo by Lewis Reed

Harness racers rounding the bend on the racetrack, circa 1910. Photo by Lewis Reed

Auto Racing

The photos below reveal what auto racing looked like in the days before helmets, seat belts, air bags, and traction control.

Rockville drew huge crowds for auto races. Rockville Fair, August 1923. Photo by Lewis Reed

Dusty Action – 1923 photo of the exciting auto races at Rockville Fair. Five racers are just coming around the bend on this dirt track with their tires spinning up dust in their wake. Photo by Lewis Reed

Two-man race car. Some early race cars included both a driver and a ‘riding mechanic’. One of the key jobs of the second man in a race car was to look backward and alert the driver to what was going on behind him. Photo by Lewis Reed

Early race car drivers were required to have a riding mechanic, otherwise it was voluntary. Riding mechanics, who in addition to being lookouts, kept an eye on tire wear and would even hop out of the car and run back through the infield to get fuel.

More dirt track action. Skinny tires make for slippery turns. Photo by Lewis Reed

Below is a 1923 Washington Post article for an auto race at the Rockville Fair.

Rockville Fair Race Ad

A football field was designed within the oval of the old Fair racetrack in 1946.

Dirt track racing was one of the main attractions, but the Fair also provided other events such as horse pulls, games of chance, showing of prized livestock and poultry, needlework, homegrown produce, baked and canned goods. A building called the Exhibit House displayed the prize-winning entries of the various categories.

Rockville Garage Displaying New Model Cars at Rockville Fair Grounds, 1918

The Fair also gave automobile dealers the opportunity to display their new models. Below is new car show time as fair goers get their first glimpse at the latest models that Rockville Garage had to offer.

Anybody for a demonstration drive? Identified by the triangle logo on the grill and the number of passengers seated in it, the car appears to be a 1918 Hudson Super Six Seven Passenger Touring. Photo by Lewis Reed

Hudson Super Six, Oldsmobile, and Dodge Brothers Motor Cars on display. Lewis Reed in drivers seat of Rockville Garage Service Truck.

Rockville Garage tent displaying Hudson Super Six, Oldsmobile, and Dodge Brothers Motor Cars at the Rockville Fair Grounds. Photo by Lewis Reed

At Your Service Rockville Garage. Lewis Reed on the left

Reed Brothers Dodge Baseball Team at Rockville Fair, ca. 1920

Most likely, Rockville’s first experience with baseball was during the Civil War on the fields where Richard Montgomery High School now stands. It was known as “Camp Lincoln” because of the Union encampment there, and Federal soldiers helped popularize the new game they brought from the North. After the Civil War those fields – known as the Rockville Fairgrounds – continued to be a popular place for baseball.

Reed Brothers Dodge had a company baseball team that played on those same fields. The photos below were taken by Lewis Reed on a field at the Rockville Fairgrounds circa early 1920s.

Pat Murray (Parts Department Manager), keeping score. Photo by Lewis Reed

Reed Brothers Dodge Baseball Team, circa early 1920s. Photo by Lewis Reed

In 1949, the Montgomery County Agricultural Center (the Fairgrounds) was moved from Rockville to its current location adjacent to the B&O Railroad between Chestnut Street and Perry Parkway.

Source: Montgomery History

July 21, 2018

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Lewis Reed Photos to Appear on Science Channel ‘Impossible Engineering’

I recently received an e-mail from the researcher on the new Science Channel series ‘Impossible Engineering’. They found Lewis Reed’s collection of early dirt track race photos that were taken at the Rockville Fairgrounds and asked permission to use a couple of them in an upcoming episode they are making on the development of the race car.

The following 1923 dirt track race shots taken by Lewis Reed will be used on the program.

Rockville Fair. Auto races, Rockville Fair.

Rockville Fair, August 1923. Photo by Lewis Reed

About Impossible Engineering

Behind every seemingly impossible marvel of modern engineering is a cast of historic trailblazers who designed new building techniques, took risks on untested materials and revolutionized their field. Brand new series, ‘Impossible Engineering’, is a tribute to their achievements. Each episode details how giant structures, record-beating buildings, war ships and space crafts are built and work. As the show revels in these modern day creations, it also leaps back in time to recount the stories of the exceptional engineers whose technological advances made it all possible. How would they have ever existed without the historical work of their ancestors? Interviews with their great advocates bring engineering history to life and retell how these incredible accomplishments shaped the modern world.

“Impossible Engineering” is produced for Science Channel by Twofour Broadcast. No mention of when it will be aired, so stay tuned!

February 1, 2018

And They’re Off! Rockville Fair Dirt Track Racing

This special post is a collection of early dirt track race photos that were taken by Lewis Reed at the Rockville Fair in the early 20th century. Held by the Montgomery County Agricultural Society (1846-1932) in Rockville, Maryland, the fair was known simply as the “Rockville Fair.” The fair’s oval dirt track was used for bicycles, harness races and later, cars.

Since the mid-19th century, an annual county fair was held in Montgomery County for four days in the month of August. Families came in wagons and carriages to the Rockville Fairgrounds and stayed for the duration. Like many fairgrounds, the Rockville Fairgrounds included an oval track. Fairground race tracks, typically one-mile or half-mile dirt racing ovals with wide, sweeping curves and grandstands for spectators, were easily adapted for bicycles, harness racing, and the sport of car racing.

Early action shots like these were difficult to take and are fairly rare, however, all of the photographs below were taken by Lewis Reed at the Rockville Fairgrounds in the early 1910-1920s. The fairgrounds were just outside Rockville, about where Richard Montgomery High School is today. The Fair lasted four days, from August 21st to the 24th, and drew visitors from local counties, Washington, and Baltimore. As always, click the photos to get a better look.