The collapse of the old Market House/ Courthouse/ Sessions House at Roscommon Town.

Roscommon town was the Assizes town for the County of Roscommon. The ‘Sessions House’ was the place where the Court of the Quarter sessions sat for criminal trials, four times a year. The building was also used as a courthouse for the administration of Justice in the Assizes Court.

Each county in Ireland probably had such a building, which was also used as a place for the Roscommon Grand Jury to meet, as well as used by the Borough of Roscommon in
administering the town. In today’s terms, it was jointly used as town hall and courthouse. In
Roscommon, we don’t know when the Sessions House was built.

The Sessions House must have been built at least fifty years prior to the events which are described in the document below which would date it to c. 1670. Is this date plausible?

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