The houses built by the first settlers were simple. In the early years huts were made of timber but in time, the local brownstone which was plentiful in South Australia became widely used. It is a building material which has weathered wonderfully with the years. As has the local bluestone, sourced further to the south, which is common in Adelaide in buildings large and small. Corrugated iron, synonomous with Australia, was invented in the 1820's and widely used as a roofing material although wooden shingles were used on the earliest homes.