page_title: James Powell and Sons
section_title: Between the wars
hierarchical_section_title: James Powell and Sons / History / Between the wars
caption_attribution_description: English: First window on the north side of the nave of St Peter's parish church, Cowfold, West Sussex, with glass made by James Powell and Sons
context_page_description: The firm of James Powell and Sons, also known as Whitefriars Glass, were English glassmakers, leadlighters and stained glass window manufacturers. As Whitefriars Glass, the company existed from the 17th century, but became well known as a result of the 19th-century Gothic Revival and the demand for stained glass windows.
context_section_description: The firm's name was changed to Powell & Sons (Whitefriars) Ltd in 1919 and the growth in business demanded new premises. In 1923 the new factory was opened in Wealdstone. Despite a flourishing business, the great expense of the new factory scuttled plans to construct a village to house the workers in a style fashionable during the Arts and Crafts movement.
  In the years between World War I and World War II, business and the financial situation were much improved.
  Glassware trended to the colourful and heavy, and optic moulding and  wheel engraving played a major part in bringing the Art Deco style to the middle and upper classes.
  It was during this period that James Humphries Hogan (1883–1948), a designer with the firm, had the most impact on Powell & Sons.  Hogan was apprenticed to the Powell & Sons firm at the age of fifteen, and it was the sole employer in his career.  He designed extremely important windows for many cathedrals in England, and the finest of these are the two windows in the great central space of Liverpool Cathedral and the windows in St. Thomas Church, Fifth Avenue, New York City, which were fabricated between the World Wars.  His influence in the area of stained glass is legendary, and his designs for tableware and serviceware, including the stemmed glassware he created specifically for the British Embassies over all the world, are without peer.  He rose in the company, becoming Chief Designer in 1913, Art Director in 1928, Managing Director in 1933, and finally Chairman of the firm in 1946.  In addition, Hogan traveled throughout the United States, as primary sales agent for the Powell & Sons firm.  From the period between 1926 and 1928, he produced a ten-fold increase in the Powell & Sons stained glass sales in America.  Unquestionably, he was a workaholic, and literally worked himself to death:  returning from a long sales trip to the United States in late December 1947, he collapsed on 3 January 1948, and slipped in a coma-like state.  He died on 12 January 1948, without ever regaining consciousness.
  In the 1930s the firm started production of millefiori paperweights, characterised by shallow domes and wide bases. This period of prosperity ended with World War II. Glass manufacture was restricted to that aiding the war effort. By the end of the war, the company was struggling to survive.
caption: St. Peter's Church, Cowfold, West Sussex
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