The present drawing is one of a series commissioned by John Christian Curwen (1756-1828), M.P. for Carlisle. He lived at Workington Hall, on the coast some twenty miles from Skiddaw, and at Belle Isle House, Belle Isle, Windermere, which had been passed down in his wife's family. He commissioned a series of Lake District views from Smith - one, Lake Windermere from Calgarth with Belle Isle, is now at Yale Center for British Art. Skiddaw, just north of Keswick, is the sixth highest peak in England, and an instantly recognisable landmark in the area.
Roger Makins was a British Diplomat who was Ambassador to the United States (1953-6). As a collector he is best known for his Collection of Pre-Raphaelite Art but he also put together a fine collection of Early British Drawings, the majority purchased from the prestigious London dealers Agnew’s and Spink.