Douglas Motors
of Kingswood, Bristol, manufacturer of motor cycles
1918 Successor to Douglas Brothers[1]
By 1922 Douglas Motors, of London, held a Royal Warrant[2]
By 1931 Douglas had become a public company and was sold by the family.
1932 New models were added, but the firm was soon in financial difficulty.
1932 The light air-cooled engine had been adapted for use in light aircraft by British Aircraft Co.
1934 They produced a 494cc shaft-drive model called the Endeavour. Douglas Motors (1932) Ltd was bankrupt[3]. William Douglas, by now quite elderly, bought back the faltering business and produced a smaller range until the end of the decade.
1935 Herr Kronfeld made a record flight from Croydon to Paris in an aircraft powered by a Douglas engine[4].
1935 The company was in financial trouble and was voluntarily liquidated. The factory was purchased by the British Pacific Trust[5]. It had been used for making motorcycles and light aero engines. The new owners would use it for making aero engines and accessories. A new public company Aero Engines Ltd was launched which planned to halt production of motorcycles, concentrating instead on engines for aircraft but the decision to end motorcycle production was soon rescinded because of the demand for the machines[6]