Our lineage of jewelers began with James S. Reed in Milan Missouri. James was a jeweler and optician as was common in the day. He had two sons James S. Reed and Frank Reed.
The 2nd J.S. Reed, a watchmaker, started what is now Reed and Sons Jewelers in Sedalia Missouri. There were some initial start up problems as half of his free money he had to start the store was tied up in an emergency appendectomy. J.S. Reed struggled through it but eventually became a successful businessman in the town.
During WW2, his son James A. Reed, served as a Merchant Marine repairing watches and doing some jewelry repair. When the war ended, he joined his father to form Reed & Son Jewelers in 1945.
James A. Reed had two sons and a daughter. His first born, James (Jim) S. Reed, and youngest child Charles H. Reed later joined the company in the late 60’s. Jim joined after college and his service in the Army during Vietnam. Jim, a two time Purple Heart recipient started working in the store in 1968. Charles started working for the store in 1969 after returning from watchmaking school in Oklahoma. Charles also served in the Army National Guard.
Ron and Ryan Reed make up the 5th generation of jewelers. Ron started working for Reed & Sons full time in 1999 after he graduated from The Texas Institute of Jewelry Technology. Ron also has his Bachelors in Chemistry from Central Missouri University. Ryan recently joined Reed & Sons after serving 13 years as a police officer in Sedalia and Pettis County in a variety of assignments including Patrol, Narcotics, and as a Patrol Sergeant. Ryan is a graduate of State Fair Community College and obtained his Gemological Institute of America Certification in Diamonds and Diamond Grading.
