Powell (James ) & Sons

James Powell & Sons, detail of nave window (c.1931), Church of St Mary, Chilton Foliat.
Photo: Peter Hildebrand

James Powell & Sons was founded when James Powell purchased, Whitefriars Glass, an old established glass works in 1834. His sons developed the business into one of the major firms of the Victorian and Edwardian eras. Especially notable is their work with Charles Winston in the 1840s and 1850s to improve the quality of glass available, and the many fine designers with whom they worked. The company’s innovations extended beyond stained glass, and the company developed a formidable reputation in a number of fields, including tableware glass, where Whitefriars Glass remains highly collectable. The stained glass department finally closed in 1973, and the company in 1980.

Sources:
James Powell & Sons, Whitefriars by Jacqueline Banerjee PhS, Associate Editor, The Victorian Web
Victorian & Edwardian Stained Glass by Marta Galicki (Historic England, reprinted by Morris & Juliet Venables, 2001)