STEPPING back into the high street of yesteryear these pictures from the Evening Mail's archive show shoppers could browse the fashion houses, pick up a pattern from the Wool Shop, pop in to the bakers for a loaf, spend their savings on the latest single, before buying something for tea from the butcher.

Many of the independent stores have struggled to retain their place in the high street amid fierce competition from national chains, but even the popular Woolworth store, in Barrow's Dalton Road, is no longer in business, replaced instead by a pound shop.

Although many of the shops are no longer in existence the lay-outs of our high streets remain remarkably unchanged, dated instead by the vintage vehicles and the simple window displays.

There's a temptation to look back at the high streets through the ages and view shopping as a much more sociable pastime.