1. Francis Alfred Skidmore was a British metalworker best known for high-profile commissions, including the glass and metal roof of the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, the Hereford Cathedral choir screen and the Albert Memorial in London.
Francis Skidmore was a member of both the Oxford Architectural Society and the Ecclesiological Society, two organisations which endorsed the Gothic Revival style.
The Francis Skidmore family moved to Coventry around 1822, possibly because Coventry was an important watchmaking centre.
Francis Skidmore learned metalworking from his father and completed a seven-year apprenticeship with him.
The earliest known examples of Francis Skidmore's work include three silver chalices made for St John the Baptist Church, Coventry, St Giles' Church, Exhall and St Alkmund's Church, Derby.
Francis Skidmore's firm installed gas lighting in St Mary's Guildhall and Holy Trinity Church, both in Coventry.
Francis Skidmore worked with Scott on the Lichfield, Hereford and Salisbury cathedral screens and the Albert Memorial in London.
Francis Skidmore died on 13 November 1896 and was buried in London Road Cemetery, Coventry.
Francis Skidmore was survived by his widow, Emma, and their four children: Francis Sidney, Bernard, Evangeline and Kenneth.
Part of this was to commission a screen from Francis Skidmore, installed in 1873 and still in place.
Francis Skidmore displayed it at the International Exhibition of 1862 where it won a medal for its superior design and craftsmanship.