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Dunoon

BurghsCowalDunoonEngvarB from May 2019Firth of Clyde
Highlands and Islands of ScotlandPages containing links to subscription-only contentPages with Scottish Gaelic IPAPopulated coastal places in ScotlandPort cities and towns in ScotlandPorts and harbours of ScotlandSeaside resorts in ScotlandSource attributionTowns in Argyll and Bute
Harbour at Dunoon geograph.org.uk 49147
Harbour at Dunoon geograph.org.uk 49147

Dunoon (; Scottish Gaelic: Dùn Omhain [t̪un ˈo.ɪɲ]) is the main town on the Cowal peninsula in the south of Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It is located on the western shore of the upper Firth of Clyde, to the south of the Holy Loch and to the north of Innellan. As well as forming part of the council area of Argyll and Bute, Dunoon also has its own community council. Dunoon was a burgh until 1976.The early history of Dunoon often revolves around two feuding clans: the Lamonts and the Campbells. Dunoon was a popular destination when travel by steamships was common around the Firth of Clyde; Glaswegians described this as going doon the watter. This diminished, and many holidaymakers started to go elsewhere as roads and railways improved and the popularity of overseas travel increased. In 1961, during the height of the Cold War, Dunoon became a garrison town to the United States Navy. In 1992, shortly after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, they closed their Holy Loch base in Sandbank, and neighbouring Dunoon suffered an economic downturn. Since the base's closure, the town and surrounding area are again turning to tourism, marketing to outdoor enthusiasts and wildlife lovers, as well as promoting festivals and competitions. The largest annual event held in the town is the Cowal Highland Gathering, which has been held since 1894. The Royal National Mòd has also been held in the town.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Dunoon (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Dunoon
Carolina Place,

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N 55.9509 ° E -4.9262 °
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Carolina Place

Carolina Place
PA23 7AF , Bogleha
Scotland, United Kingdom
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Harbour at Dunoon geograph.org.uk 49147
Harbour at Dunoon geograph.org.uk 49147
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Dunoon massacre
Dunoon massacre

The Dunoon massacre was a massacre that took place around Dunoon on the Cowal Peninsula, Scotland, on 3 June 1646. Men of the powerful Clan Campbell massacred men, women and children of the Clan Lamont.By 1646, the Clan Campbell, neighbours of the Clan Lamont, had steadily encroached the Lamont's lands. After the 1645 Battle of Inverlochy near Fort William, the Clan Lamont took the opportunity to lay waste to the Campbell's territory. The following year, the powerful Clan Campbell army invaded the Clan Lamont lands, taking their castles of Toward on Cowal and Asgog on the banks of Loch Asgog on South West Cowal. At Castle Toward the Campbells asked for hospitality, which was given, according to custom, and then slaughtered the Lamonts in their beds, before throwing bodies down the well to poison the water. James Lamont surrendered after accepting fair terms for his people, but the Campbells reneged on the terms and took the Lamonts captive. The two castles were set alight and razed, and the prisoners were transported by boat to Dunoon, where the Campbells slaughtered over two hundred of Lamont's men, women and children. Thirty-six men were killed by hanging, while the rest were stabbed to death or buried alive. James Lamont was thrown into a dungeon for five years. This event became known as the Dunoon massacre.The massacre is commemorated by a memorial in Dunoon, dedicated in 1906 and known as the Clan Lamont Memorial or the Dunoon Massacre Memorial.

Dunoon Pier
Dunoon Pier

Dunoon Pier is a Victorian pier in Dunoon, Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It is owned by Argyll and Bute Council, and was completed in its current form in 1898. Reaching out into the Firth of Clyde, the earliest parts of the pier date to 1835. It is now a Category A listed structure (upgraded from Category B in 2011) and, according to Historic Environment Scotland, the best surviving example of a timber ferry pier in Scotland.The pier is constructed of Greenheart timber piles, first built in 1835. A more substantial structure followed in 1841 after tourism to the town had increased. This second incarnation was destroyed in a storm three years later. It was rebuilt the following year and extended in 1867 by Campbell Douglas.The pier was purchased in 1868 by James Hunter, of Hafton House, and was "considerably enlarged, with every convenience for passenger and goods traffic". A ferry also ran from the pier to Cloch lighthouse at one stage.The pier was extended to the current structure between 1896 and 1898. It was shortened to allow the building of a breakwater in 2005, just to the south of the pier. As well as protecting the pier and its architecture from storm surges, a new link span was installed alongside the breakwater. This was to allow the berthing and loading of roll-on/roll-off ferries instead of the side-loading ferries that used to serve the pier. A tender to serve the new link-span between two interested parties, Caledonian MacBrayne and Western Ferries, came to nothing. Prior to June 2011, the pier was in daily use by Caledonian MacBrayne, who ran a regular foot passenger and car-ferry service to Gourock. However, after June 2011, a renewed tendering process produced a passenger-only ferry service (Argyll Ferries, owned by Caledonian MacBrayne) using the breakwater for berthing. On 1 September 2004, during the construction of the breakwater, the cargo vessel Jackie Moon (82 metres in length) ran aground on the breakwater, with six people on board. Since the breakwater became operational in June 2011, Argyll Ferries operate from this docking facility. The Waverley struck the breakwater on 26 June 2009, with some 700 people on board. The pier was partially refurbished by Argyll and Bute Council during 2015. Now containing meeting rooms, it is purely a tourist attraction.