Weekends
Popular weekend activities in Montgomery County in the early 20th century included day-trips to the beach, working in the garden, or going on a picnic. Families took to the shore in ever-increasing numbers, friends camped and picnicked along the Potomac River, and children swam in summers in the Crystal Pool at Glen Echo Amusement Park. Interest in gardening surged in the early 20th century as people sought to show off their homes, using the garden to direct the eye.
Swimming, Diving, and the Beach
By the end of the 19th century people were flocking to beaches for popular seaside activities such as swimming, surf bathing, and diving... in bathing suits made of wool? That’s right. Even by the 1920s, the idea of going to the beach and actually getting into the water to swim was still relatively new. Functionality in swimwear was not as important as fashion, but the prevailing theory was that wool would help keep you warm.
The Potomac River
These women are using bathing caps in addition to their wool bathing costumes.
L-R: Bernard Hanshew, Lewis Reed, two unknown men, sporting classic wool swimwear.
(Bernard Hanshew on the left)
Crystal Pool, Glen Echo Park
Phil Graves, diving into the pool at Glen Echo Amusement Park.
Diving off Potomac Aqueduct Bridge, 1913
Ocean City, Maryland
Ethelene Reed and daughter Mary Jane on the beach at Ocean City, c. 1930s.
The woman on the right is wearing a bathing cap, as well as black tights and flat-soled slippers in the sand.
In the early 1900s, women's swimming outfits were heavy and clingy when wet. In contrast to the swimmers on the right, the women on the left side of the shot are clearly wearing shirtwaists and skirts, same as they would wear to stroll the streets in town.
Picnicking
The beginning of the 20th century marked the heyday of the outdoor picnic. It was a reprieve for families and friends to withdraw into bucolic natural settings, away from the increasing noise and pollution of industrialized city life. The development of new modes of transportation (trains and motor cars) and the acceleration of social change made the countryside accessible to a far greater proportion of the population than ever before.
Below, a variety of campers enjoy each other's company over meals al fresco, amidst their tents and hammocks
Picnics were often celebratory occasions, commemorating summer birthdays, graduations, and family reunions. Everyone brought food to share.
The Thomas family, seen above enjoying a picnic at Rock Creek Park. At right, a group of friends gather on the grass to share a drink.
Gardening
In 1926, Lewis Reed and his wife Ethelene built this craftsman-style house in Gaithersburg. Planned during post-WWI optimism, “Realty Park” was platted in 1919 by the Gaithersburg Realty Association, on land purchased from C. Herman Rabbitt. Realty Park fronted North Frederick Avenue, Gaithersburg’s main street, and it was intended to be a prestigious residential development.
By the 1920s, the "curb appeal" of a house, including the attractiveness of the yard and gardens, became more important. Japanese-style gardens, incorporating water features, architectural elements, and decorative areas delineated by flower bed borders, had also become popular in the early 20th century.
Lewis Reed was an avid gardener and his large lot soon became a showplace. Many of the older yards in the "Realty Park" subdivision in Gaithersburg featured flowers and shrubs grown from cuttings and seeds shared by the Reeds.
There was a driveway between the properties called “chicken alley” because all the neighborhood homes back then kept chickens. The Reeds also had a chicken house, attached to their garage, which is visible at the top right corner of this aerial photo of Lewis Reed's prized fish pond.
Early view of fishpond with chicken house at top right corner
^Later view of fishpond with birdbath in the middle
People had many kinds of theme gardens such as rose gardens, cottage gardens and Italian gardens. Even garden rooms were popular. All of the lattice work, fences, and trellises in his yard were hand-built by Lewis Reed.
^This photo captures three different styles of hand-made trellis In Lewis Reed’s backyard.
Mary Jane Reed (Lewis's daughter) in the backyard, c. 1935
Mary Jane feeding the fish in the pond (above) and posed near her father's trellis among the hollyhocks (right).
Tending the flowers
Lewis Reed in the backyard, c. 1960
Proud of his handiwork