Although war was now over, rationing continued until 1953 for sweets, chocolate and sugar, and 1954 for meat and all other food.
Life was getting a little easier in the home thanks to new gadgets including electric cookers, fridges and vacuum cleaners.
And holidays became more popular with seaside resorts like Morecambe being the destination for many living in industrial towns.
Those who could afford it bought a television to watch the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953, a spectacle not to be repeated for another 70 years.
We are grateful to Andrew Reilly and Lancaster Past & Present for these photographs of Lancaster seven decades ago.
In case you missed them: Fascinating old pictures take you all the way back to Lancaster in the 1940s

5. Fifties nostalgia
Market Street was a popular thoroughfare in the Fifties, just as now. Photo: Photo courtesy of Andrew Reilly, Lancaster Past and Present

6. Fifties nostalgia
A view of the A6 through Scotforth in the Fifties. Photo: Courtesy of Andrew Reilly, Lancaster Past and Present

7. Fifties nostalgia
Dalton Square is named as Town Hall Square in this image from the 1950s. Photo: Photo courtesy of Andrew Reilly, Lancaster Past and Present

8. Fifties nostalgia
The entrance to the old Market Hall can just be seen on this photo of Common Garden Street in the Fifties. Photo: Photo courtesy of Andrew Reilly, Lancaster Past and Present