The rail transport industry journal Modern Railways named Reed its Man of the Year for 1970.
[citation needed] Prior to his ascendancy as president, Reed oversaw the final transition of the Santa Fe from steam to Diesel engines in 1957.
[2] He served as the president of Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, Illinois, from 1984 to 1994.
Reed's grandfather was John G. Shedd, founder of the aquarium.
This biography related to rail transport in the United States is a stub.