Born in St. Albans in 1909 Francis Skeat was a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, the British Society of Master Glass Painters, and a member of the Art Workers Guild. He created over 400 stained glass windows for churches and cathedrals both in the UK and abroad.
In 1834 the London Wine merchant James Powell (1774-1840) bought the small Whitefriars glassworks just off Fleet Street as a business for his sons. Originally unfamiliar with glass production the company experiemented with different techniques and were soon supply patent glass to other leading stained glass companies and designer as well as making stained glass windows of their own.
