American Years Revisited

Ep 08 - Audrey MacDougall and the Officers Wives Club

In this episode John Kelly talks to Audrey McDougall about the officers' wives club during the American Years in Dunoon.

Ep 06 - A diver’s story - ex-American Navy diver Don Gabel talks about his life

Don was a diver at the American military base on the Holy Loch in Argyll Scotland. Don tells us about his life in Hawaii then travelling to Italy and finally settling in Scotland at the Holy Loch. His accounts of life above and below the waves paints a very clear picture of operations at the base and why so many servicemen came to choose Dunoon at home.

Ep 05 - Cuban Missile Crisis - Gerry’s Tale

In this episode Gerry Pursley shares a first-hand account of active service on the Proteus at the height of the Cuban Missile Crisis. With no warning the Proteus left the Holy Loch and headed for the North Atlantic. The ship wasn’t quite sea ready as they left in such a hurry, this lead to all sorts of situations that you’ll hear Gerry describing in rich detail.

Ep 10 - Euan Ross

In this episode Kate Simpson talked with author and sailor Euan Ross of Kilmun. Euan talks about growing up on the Holy Loch and what it was like to live in the shadow of the ship.

Ep 04 - A chat about old Dunoon and American accents

In this episode we hear memories of the first years of the Americans being in Argyll, it features a chat with three local women Linda and Andrene, who both grew up in Dunoon itself, and Margaret grew up down the road in Innellan.Together they recall the early days of the American presence in the Holy Loch. Linda and her husband Gerry also talk about how they met for the first time. Gerry and Charlie talk about their accents and how they’ve kept a hold of them for so many years.

Ep 02 - How the Americans came to have a base on the Holy Loch on the West coast of Scotland, part 2

In this, the second introductory episode of the American Years Revisited podcast, local historian Margaret Hubbard takes us from the end of the second world war to the Americans arriving in the Holy Loch on the Cowal Peninsula in Argyll, from 1945 to 61.

Ep 01 - How the Americans came to have a base in the Holy Loch on the West Coast of Scotland, part 1.

In this, the first of two introductory episodes, local historian Margaret Hubbard talks us through what lead to the Americans setting up a base in the Holy Loch on the Cowal Peninsula in Argyll in 1961. This first episode takes us through WWII from 1939 to 45.

Ep 03 - Gerry and Charlie

n this, the third episode of the American Years revisited podcast, two retired American sailors, well known Dunoon residents, Charlie Witherow and Gerry Pursley, talk about themselves and their memories of arriving at in Scotland.

Ep 13 - Terry Sinsheimer

In this episode we talk to Board member Terry Sinsheimer. Terry talks about life and routines aboard the USS Hunley AS-31, his career in the navy and how he came to be a member of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.  

Ep 12 Phil Ambagtsheer

Phil Ambagtsheer was born and raised in Los Angeles and joined the US submarine fleet after college in the early 80s. In 1984 Phil transferred to the Henry Clay SSBN 625 Gold Crew nuclear missle submarine which operated out of the Holy Loch. Phil talks about his life as a submariner. He goes into the psychology of being alone with a crew deep below the waves.  He talks about life ashore and the strains that the job places on those you love.