While awaiting his land grant, he established a San Francisco Bay ferry service using a sailboat.
[2] In 1834, the governor of Alta California José Figueroa granted Rancho Corte Madera del Presidio to Reed.
The grant encompassed what is now southern Corte Madera, the Tiburon Peninsula, and Strawberry Point.
[3] A large central portion of the Tiburon peninsula is presently known as Ring Mountain, most of which is in public ownership and is habitat for a diverse set of native biota.
Reed also did brisk businesses in hunting, skins, tallow, and other products until his death in 1843.