Things to Do and See in Rocking Roscommon!

Things to Do and See in Rocking Roscommon!

The county of Roscommon is located in the central north area of Ireland. Roscommon is a lovely county to visit. The name Roscommon in Irish is “Ros Comain” meaning “Saint Comans Wood”.

Roscommon has a long history going back to the time of the High Kings of Ireland. The population of Roscommon is around 65,000 people. The county is part of the province of Connacht and the 11^th largest in the whole of Ireland. Roscommon is the third biggest county in the province of Connacht. The county covers 984 square miles in total.

Roscommon is around 155 kilometres from Dublin, it would take you around 2 hours to drive from Dublin to Roscommon.  The county has tons of interesting stuff to see, beautiful lakes, historic sites, Irish castles and some amazing golf courses.

Roscommon was badly affected by the famine during the 1800s and Irelands National Famine Museum is in the county. Back n the times of the High Kings Roscommon was a stronghold of the seat of Connacht and during the Tudor conquest of Ireland. , the region was established with a boundary along with the River Suck.

The county has had some famous artwork produced going back to the 12th century, most notably art pieces “The ‘Cross of Cong”and the “Shrine of the Book of Dimma” Roscommon is a get part of the Emerald Isle, you have to check it out while in Ireland!

See my post here on Whats in the Irish breakfast!

Irish National Famine Museum

This very interesting museum is located in Stroketown Park Roscommon. The Irish National Famine Museum has loads of old records of one of Irelands darkest periods. The potato famine in Ireland was a very challenging period and the years from 1845 to 1849 saw many Irish people die and emirate to the United States.

The museum houses lots of documents from the famine period and some very interesting displays. It a nice museum to visit, if you are an American with Irish relative’s this is a museum you wanna check out while in Roscommon!

Loughkey Forest and Activity Park

Loughkey Forest and Activity Park is an amazing area to visit, the park has some beautiful woodland areas and a few islands to see. The park has a rich history going back to the year 1184 when the Kings of Moylurg occupied the area. It’s a lovely park to go for a stroll in and get some nice photos. Loughkey has some of the nicest scenery you will see when visiting Rocking Roscommon!

There are a large number of activities in the park, orienteering, hiking and cycling. You can hire out a boat and cruise around like a Lord, it’s a great area to take children and watch them enjoy the great outdoors!

Stroketown Park House and Gardens

This large Palladian villa-style house is set on 300 acres of land. Stroketown Park House is part of an 18th-century wonderful Anglo-Irish country estate. The house is a beautiful example of an old county estate home with some fantastic gardens to see.

There are guided tours of the property and it shows all parts of this luxurious house that is steeped in history.  The estate is home to the Irish National Famine Museum. The house has its original old furnishings, it is unchanged in many years. It’s another cracking attraction in Roscommon.

Roscommon Castle

This large medieval castle is owned by the Irish state. Roscommon Castle is a national monument, it is located in the area of Cloonbrackna. This castle is important in terms of Irish castles, it was a royal castle in Ireland in the 13th &14 centuries.

The building is in a ruined state, but its still an amazing piece of history. It’s quite large. The castle was very badly damaged by Cromwellian forces back in the day. In the year 1690 the castle was burned down and after a while fell into a poor state.   Roscommon castle is FREE to visit and opened all year round, you can pop in for a peep!

King House Historic and Culture Centre

This top-notch Georgian mansion style house is in superb condition. The house has been restored to a very high standard. King House was built in the year 1730 by the King family.

The King family were landowners.  King House used to be a military barracks. After the civil war in Ireland, the house fell in a bad condition. In the 1900s the house was restored by the local county council.

King house nowadays is a museum and visitor centre. There are a few collections and displays to see in the house and museum.  When visiting the house you will learn about the long 300 years of history the house has.

Boyle Abbey

This abbey was the first of the Cistercain monastery founded in the province of Connacht. This old abbey is an impressive building founded in the 12th century.

The building is in a ruined state but some of the amazing features are still standing tall. The abbey is now state-owned, a family ticket is priced at just 16.00 euros to see this old monastery.  The abbey is a national monument. There are guided tours of the building and an exhibition in the locally restored gatehouse. It another cool old building to see in Rocking Roscommon!

Roscommon County Museum

The Roscommon County Museum has a large collection of artefacts. The museum has a collection of historic items of importance to the county of Roscommon. The museum is located in an old Presbyterian church dating back to the 1860s.

The museum has some interesting items to see like the Cross of Cong and a 9th-century slab from the Saint Coman’s Foundation. The tourist information office is in the same building as the museum. The museum is opened Monday to Saturday from 10.00 am to 5.00 pm, the entry fee is 2.00 euros for adults and 1.00 euros for children. It’s a nice little museum to check out while in Roscommon.

Drumanone Dolmen

Drumanone Dolmen is located in Tinacarra, County Roscommon. This old dolmen is a portal tomb, the two-portal stones are two metres high. The dolmen is in good condition for its age. The dolmen dates back to 2000 BC. It is one of the largest dolmens in Ireland.  Ireland is full of dolmens some dating back thousands of years, most of the dolmens are FREE to visit.

The capstone has slipped and moved over the years, this makes it quite difficult to measure the size of the chamber, it is believed the chamber was around two meters in diameter.  The dolmen was excavated in 1954 and some cremated bones were discovered and a porcellanitic axe.

Roscommon Dominican Priory

This Dominican Priory dates back to the year 1253, it is also known as Saint Marys Priory. The Priory is located outside the medieval town of Roscommon. The building has a long history going back 1253 to the time of King of Connacht Felim O Connor.

Roscommon was a huge medieval settlement back in the day. The former King of Connacht Felim O Connor is buried in the grounds of the abbey. One of the most interesting features of the Fairy is on the north wall, an effigy made between the years 1290 and 1300 with 8 mail-clad warriors in niches with angels overhead them its cool feature of the priory.

Mc Dermott’s Castle

This castle is out of this world, it’s in such a beautiful location with years of history.  The castle is located on an island surrounded by water, it’s not in the best shape nowadays.

There are a number of tour companies that can get you out to the island to see this amazing castle, the trip out is specular. Mc Dermott’s Castle was built in the 1800s by the King Family, they used the castle as a summer house.  

The castle was burned down during World War 2. You can hire out a boat and row out to Mc Dermot’s castle, but be warned if you decided to go onto the island, this building is in poor condition, it has been stated online that it is in a dangerous condition, so be careful!

I hope you find this post useful, I welcome any question or suggestions by email to – info@allthings-ierland.com.

Thanks

John C

All Things Ireland