Monaghan Courthouse

Notes:

Monaghan courthouse was built between 1827 and 1830 to plans designed by Joseph Welland. The renowned Victorian ecclesiastical architect was responsible for the design of over 100 Church of Ireland churches throughout Ireland until his death in 1860; the courthouse in Monaghan was one of his earlier projects. A neo-classical design, the edifice was erected on the site of the old gaol; the builder was Thomas Stewart and it cost £10000. A new gaol was built between 1814 and 1824 on High Street, which was later adapted as a county infirmary and eventually demolished and replaced by the current Monaghan County Hospital in 1932-38.

The entrance façade of the Courthouse exhibits channeled rustication on the ground floor and a Doric portico with a pediment bearing the royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom, intricately carved in Portland Stone. The building was constructed using large ashlar blocks of biscuit-coloured sandstone sourced from Eshnaglogh mountain quarry in Co. Monaghan, situated 15 km north-west of Monaghan town. This medium grained, greyish cream coloured stone is the Carnmore Sandstone Member of the Meenymore Formation and it is Mississippian (Carboniferous) in age. It is documented that limestone from Donagh quarry, located 4.5 km from Monaghan, was also used in the courthouse, but the features in which it was applied are not specified. It is known that Donagh quarry later supplied ornamental stone for the quoins and other external decoration in the Roman Catholic Cathedral of St Maccartan. Therefore, it is possible that the Donagh Limestone was used for dressed work in the courthouse also.

The courthouse came under attack during the Civil War and bullet holes are still visible on some of the columns. In 1981 the building was destroyed by fire and remained vacant until its reconstruction in 1986. Refurbishment of the courthouse took place during the first decade of the twenty first century and by 2011 the façade had been restored to its original state. The twentieth century extension was removed from the front of the building; the stone was cleaned; and Carnmore Sandstone from Rossmore Quarry in Fermanagh was used for repairs. The Fermanagh stone used in the refurbishment is from the same bed as the Eshnaglogh Mountain Sandstone used originally in the construction of the building. The interior walls are faced with limestone from Old Leighlin, Co, Carlow and the floor tiles are of Kilkenny Marble.

The OPW Architectural Services were responsible for the refurbishment and John Sisk and Son Ltd. was the main contractor. In 2012 this restoration venture was acknowledged with an Irish Architecture Award under the category of Best Conservation/Restoration Project.