John Charles Maggs: The Painter of Coaching Scenes John Charles Maggs (1819 – 1896) stands as a singular figure in Victorian art history, celebrated primarily for his meticulously rendered coaching scenes—a genre that captured the spirit of Britain’s burgeoning railway age and cemented his reputation as one of the era's foremost illustrators. Born in Bath, Somerset, Maggs descended from a family steeped in artistic tradition; his father, James Maggs, was a furniture japanner, establishing a lineage dedicated to decorative arts and meticulous craftsmanship—a heritage that profoundly shaped Ma…