Monument record MHG57064 - WWI laundry - High Street, Invergordon

A WWI laundry on High Street, Invergordon.

The site was investigated in 2015 as part of the ARCH project 'Invergordon in World War I'. At the corner of High Street and Munro Street on the south side of High Street a building oriented north-south is depicted on a WWI Naval plan in private collection, and shaded to indicate that it has been taken over by the Admiralty. It is situated near one of the gates from the High Street leading into the Naval dockyard area. The laundry formed the section of the building closest to the High Street with an air bottle shop behind it. On the detailed plan the laundry appears to stick out into the High Street. The 1947 aerial photograph shows a building at this location, although it is not clear if it the same as the WWI one. All buildings at this area have been demolished. <1>

At least three versions of a WWI Naval plan survive, two in private collection which probably date to wartime, and one in the National Archives (MPI 1/641/4) which dates to 1921. On all three the buildings taken over or built by the Navy are shaded, but there are a few discrepancies between the plans. One of the plans in private collection has enlarged details, but only shows the Admiralty buildings and not others in the town. Valuation Rolls also indicate some buildings not shaded on our plans were taken over by the military. It is clear from contemporary photographs that the army built additional buildings, particularly north of Cromlet Drive. <2>