Trena Cox (1895 – 1980)

Trena Cox was born in Bebington on the Wirral Peninsula in North West England in 1895. Her family later moved to Birkenhead before settling in the nearby suburban village of Oxton. Following a period of study at the Laird School of Art in Birkenhead, Cox moved to Chester in 1924 to begin her career as a professional stained glass artist. She initially worked in collaboration with the firm of Williams, Gamon & Co. (Kaleyards) Ltd but soon established her company T. M. Cox & Co. 

 

Trena Cox remained living and working in Chester for the rest of her life. She occupied a studio alongside the premises of Williams, Gamon & Co. (Kaleyards) Ltd till the mid-1940s when she established a home studio at 96 Watergate Street. During a career lasting almost fifty years, she produced stained glass for over sixty locations throughout North West England and North Wales, with a small number of windows installed at locations further afield including sites in Yorkshire, Hertfordshire, Gloucestershire, West Sussex, Shropshire, Warwickshire and Norfolk.

 

Trena Cox made an enduring commitment to Chester and was a passionate advocate for the preservation of the city's medieval heritage. Reflecting on her career in 1956, the Cheshire Observer commented: “The reputation she has built up over the years for skilled design and artistry has brought prestige to the city in which she works.”

 

Trena Cox died in Chester in 1980. Over the years that followed, she faded into obscurity in the city of Chester and became a neglected figure in the history of stained glass, often overlooked in surveys of the craft in the twentieth century,
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The Trena Cox Project aims to recognise her enormous contribution to the cultural life of Chester and permanently establish her place in the history of Chester Cathedral and the story of the city. 

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Trena Cox’s birth name was Emma Trina Cox, but she seems to have been known as Trina from early childhood. Professionally, she used the name Trena Mary Cox.

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View photographs of Trena Cox's stained glass here.
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