Wakefield and Yorkshire in Pictures

Frederick Jones was born in Bradford, the son of an artist.  He studied at Bradford School of Art and at Leeds School of Art.

He exhibited at the Royal Academy from 1931, and was Art Master at Pudsey Grammar School and Deputy Principal of Pudsey Technical School.

He drew the towns and cities of Yorkshire with close observation and fine detail.

This view, made in the mid 1940s, is taken from the lower end of the Springs in Wakefield, looking up to the Cathedral in the days before the area around the Cathedral was closed to traffic and pedestrianised.

Many West Yorkshire towns flourished after the industrial revolution, when its rich natural resources of coal, steel and wool formed the basis of its financial prosperity.

This image shows Wakefield as a thriving city, with the artist accurately recording the details of daily life.