John Usher

Bank: National Provincial Bank

Place of work: London Fenchurch Street branch

Died: 18 February 1945

John Benjamin Usher was born on 30 January 1886, the son of Samuel and Sarah Anne Usher. He worked as a wire rope maker and then when he was 18 he joined the Royal Navy, in which he served for 22 years, including as a submariner during the First World War. He married his wife Matilda in 1912 and they had a son together.  

In 1926, on his retirement from the Royal Navy, Usher joined the staff of National Provincial Bank as an engineer's assistant at its London office. In 1938 he moved to the bank's Fenchurch Street branch to become a liftman in the building. In his obituary, a colleague noted that '…his helpful and cheerful disposition was greatly appreciated by the staff, and also the tenants in the building. He was popular amongst his colleagues and ever ready to lend a hand.' 

Usher had become a member of the Royal Naval reserve, so in August 1939 he was called up to serve again. He served on land in the UK, and at the time of his death he was in charge of gunnery at a Royal Naval land base. On 18 February 1945, Chief Stoker John Usher died of cancer in hospital. He was 59 years old and left his widow, Matilda, and their son.