‘Jack’ Lisher was born in Houghton near Amberley in 1924 to Winifred and John Lisher, a railway
signalman (whose father John was a railway porter, whose father John before him was also a railway porter!)
By 1939, now with three children, the family were living at No 2 Railway Cottage, Hardham, Pulborough.
Father John was still a signalman, and 15 year old Jack was a porter.
During the Second World War Jack joined the Royal Engineers, where he worked on occupied German
railways. Back at home, he was working as a signalman like his father. Jack recalled to the Lancing Herald
newspaper that during wetter winters you had to row a boat across the swollen river between Amberley
and Pulborough to reach the signal box there. At Amberley the job involved running the Post Office too,
giving out pensions as well as train tickets. Jack met his future wife Joyce Jones when they both worked at
Amberley station, they married in 1957.
Later, as a rural relief signalman, he worked at 32 different signal boxes across Sussex – gaining a certificate
from each one after a period of training specific to that location. In 2002 he donated all 32 certificates to
Littlehampton Museum for their collection of railway memorabilia. He died in 2003
