In Norwich, CT in 1860 the firm of Douglas, Rogers & Co., believed to be a partnership of Frank Douglas and Caleb B. Rogers, was created to manufacture a water escape valve for steam engines, which had just been patented by Douglas. In 1863 steam engine governors and ice skates were added to the product line, both of which had just been patented by Douglas. Rogers was a successful and wealthy manufacturer of woodworking machinery and presumably provided capital, manufacturing experience and sales contacts. Judging by the number of surviving examples, the ice skates were quite successful, the valve and governor less so.

By the early 1870s the above firm seems to have disappeared and Douglas had relocated to Chicago and established the Frank Douglas Machinery Co.. This manufacturer and dealer of steam engines, woodworking and iron working machinery was active from 1872 to 1875, and likely for longer than that.

We have seen both Frank Douglass Machinery Co. and Frank Douglas Machinery Co. Such casualness in spelling was uncommon by the 1870s, but by no means unheard of.

Information Sources

• 1860-05-05 Scientific American: article on the Douglas water escape valve.
• The case of "James Kirby et al. v. Frank Douglas et al." was heard by the Illinois Supreme Court in September 1874. Kirby, running a woodworking business, was a tenant of Douglas. Douglas and an employee had entered the business of Mr. Kirby to seize items for rent in arrears because Douglas had learned that Kirby was planning to vacate the premises without paying rent owed; Kirby had already moved out the most valuable machinery, leaving behind only a few items worth a total of less than twenty dollars. The jury of the lower court found Douglas guilty of trespass and assessed damages of one cent. The Supreme Court upheld the decision.
• The Inter-state Exposition Souvenir: Containing a Historical Sketch of Chicago; Also a Record of the Great Inter-state Exposition of 1873, from Its Inception to Its Close; Names of Exhibitors, and Description of Articles Exhibited, 1873. p. 304.

  Frank Douglass Machinery Co., 253 and 255 South Canal street, Chicago. Wood and Iron Working Machinery. A large showing was made by this well-known Company, whose wares are as standard as their reputation. As the display of machinery of all kinds was the largest in the Exposition, to describe each article would be to devote a large space of this volume, hence a favorable mention must suffice, as all the articles shown were thoroughly well known to the manufacturing classes. Among the wares displayed, mention may be made of Cameron's special steam-pump, a pump of decided merit; also of J. A. Fay & Co.'s patent self-feed blind slat tenoning machine, manufactured by J. A. Fay & Co., Cincinnati, O., for which house this Company are exclusive agents. This is an entirely new machine for making tenons on slats for rolling blinds, and combines the Ellis and Bickford patents. The stuff to be worked may be of any length desired; it is fed endwise into the revolving discs, and by simply depressing the lever the slat is rotated on the revolving cutting tools, which make and divide simultaneously two tenons at one operation. The machine will work any length of slat, from 1 3/4 inch to 24 inches long, and makes any size tenon desired. It will work about 20,000 per day. The tight and loose pulleys are 5 1/2 inch diameter diameter, 2 1/4 inch face, and should make 700 revolutions per minute. Weight of machine, 200 lbs. The entire exhibition of this Company was one of interest, and one for which they are entitled to great credit. A large portion of the machinery shown was in motion, the Company furnishing their own power from one of the Baxter portable steam engines, which is the most safe, simple, durable and economical engine in the world.

• Google Books lists an 1873 Illustrated catalogue of wood and iron working machinery [etc., etc.]. from Frank Douglas Machinery Co. (Chicago, Ill.) The catalog has 148 pages.
• Engineer, Architect and Surveyor for October 15, 1874, has a supplement on that year's "Inter-State Industrial Exposition of Chicago", had the following:

  Frank Douglas Machinery Co., 253-5 South Canal Street, Chicago, exhibited the engine which drove the circular shafting. The cylinder was 12"X24", and the peculiarity of the engine consisted in its automatic cut-off and rotary valves, which are difficult to explain without the aid of drawings. The admission valves were vertical cylinders placed at the sides of the cylinder, and the exhaust, horizontally at the bottom of the cylinder and transverse to its axis. The admission valves have a long slot in their length and on the inside surface a curved groove in which work the cut-off valves, and they are given a continuous rotary motion by mitre wheels driven from a bevel pinion gearing into a bevel wheel on the main crank shaft. The cut-off valves communicate direct with and are thus actuated by the governor. The slotted form of the main valves causes the steam to press them closely against their port face, and the wear is of course uniform throughout; the indicator cards are among the best we have, ever seen, they show great sensitiveness and very quick cut-off and exhaust; as rapid a cut-off in fact as in the Corliss engine. This Company also exhibited a small Baxter portable engine, which drove a rotary pump; the cylinder of the Baxter engine is enclosed in the boiler shell, and thus loss of heat from radiation is entirely prevented.

• Legislative Documents Submitted to the Sixteenth General Assembly of the State of Iowa, covering the year 1875, lists several payments made to "Frank Douglass Machinery Co."
• The Lakeside Annual Directory of the City of Chicago, 1875-6 lists "Douglas Frank, pres. Frank Douglas Machinery Co., r[esidence] 584 W. VanBuren". The company itself was located at 253 S. Canal, and their secretary was William S. North. No other employees were listed.
• The 1877-01-26 issue of Chicago Daily Law Bulletin lists "Frank Douglas Machinery Co v W H Hornaday, Benj F Butler Dana F. Hutchins and Chas Palmer". The 1877-02-09 edition lists "Frank Douglas Machinery Co v Charles C Merrick". The 1877-03-16 edition lists "The Frank Douglass Machine Co, A H Burley and City of Chi. Bill to foreclose trust deed, Merrick and wife to Gallup, to secure note of $15,000."
• The Journal of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers for October 1911 carries an obituary of one Chas. Arthur Hague, who had briefly worked as "mechanical engineer and draftsman on steam engines, boilers, etc.", for Frank Douglas Machinery Co. in 1875.