Source: Michael Doyle Their Name Liveth For Evermore: The Great War Roll of Honour for Leicestershire and Rutland.
He was the son of Fred Merton Fisher, a hosiery trade counterman, born 1868 in Stamford, Lincs., and his wife Emily Annie Fisher (nee Jones, married q2 1890 in the Leicester district), born 1869 in Leicester. Arthur Merton was born on the 14th April 1892 in Leicester, his siblings were, Elsie May, born 1894 in Leicester, Fred, born 1896, Lily Trengrove, born 1899 and Frank, born 1900, the latter three siblings were all born in Barrow upon Soar, Leics., in March 1901 the family home was at The Nook, Barrow upon Soar, Leics. In April 1911 Arthur was employed as a hosiery trade worker and was residing in the family home at The Nook, Barrow upon Soar, Leics., together with his father, a hosiery trade warehouse foreman, his mother and siblings, Elsie, a hosiery trade worker, Fred, a hosiery trade worker, Lily, a schoolgirl, Frank, a schoolboy, Sidney Elmer, a schoolboy, born 1903, Doris Louisa, born 1908 and Stanley Ernest, born 1910, the latter three siblings were all born in Barrow upon Soar, Leics. Arthur enlisted into the Royal Navy to serve for the period of hostilities on the 2nd February 1916, he was allocated the service number J/49742 in Plymouth, Devon. His medical examination recorded that he was 5 foot 9 inches in height and had a chest measurement of 37½ inches, his hair colour was light and he had grey eyes, his complexion was described as fair, he gave his trade or calling as fruiterer. His record of service began when he joined HMS Vivid I as an Ordinary Seaman on the 2/2/16 – 13/4/16. HMS Blake, 14/4/16 – 7/10/16. HMS Vivid I, 8/10/16 – 28/11/16. HMS Sandhurst – Depot Ship (HMS Pheasant), 29/11/16 – 1/3/17, when he was killed by a mine explosion off the Orkneys. The circumstances in which Arthur lost his life are as follows. HMS Pheasant under the command of Lieut. Hubert Griffith, was part of the 15th Destroyer Flotilla, based at Scapa Flow. On 1st March 1917 she sailed to conduct a local patrol around Hoy, where she was seen by the signal station at Stromness at 5.30 am. At 6.10 am a large explosion was heard, but a search by a local trawler could find nothing. Later that morning a group of minesweeping trawlers discovered a patch of oil and wreckage, and a floating body, identified as Midshipman Cotter. There were no survivors. It was presumed that she had struck a mine, probably one that had broken loose from a defensive British minefield.