Within the same town there is also a broad contrast of materials used to construct buildings. The town's first bank is made from fine dressed stone while the Mission Hall raised in the 1880s is built with corrugated iron. The CD not only provides information on Scots architecture it also draws attention to human stories from the area. Cromarty's West Church is fronted by the grave of a much loved minister, the Rev Alexander Stewart, who was buried between the doors of the Free Church he had helped to found, as a mark of respect. The houses built by James F Thompson, a local bank agent, were eventually bought by the coastguard but only after Thompson had taken his own life in despair at having failed to sell the properties.
Some buildings mark the technological breakthroughs of their time.
Dr Gibson's modern 1930s house has futuristic garage doors which were opened by a photo electric cell. The Highland Council has scooped four prestigious yellow flag awards for clean and safe beaches, while in Argyll Oban's Ganavan Beach has also been pronounced a winner. The top beaches include two new designations for Golspie and Achmelich Bay which join past winners Dornoch and Nairn to double the number of flags granted to the Highlands in this year's Seaside Awards. A total of 21 Scottish beaches compared to just 16 last year, receive yellow flag status in the award list, which was published recently. The awards are issued by Keep Scotland Beautiful and the Tidy Britain Group.