Series 3 - Coroner's Report Books

Identity area

Reference code

IE OCL GJ1/3

Title

Coroner's Report Books

Date(s)

  • 1854-1859 (Creation)
  • 1836-1840 (Creation)

Level of description

Series

Extent and medium

2 bound volumes

Context area

Name of creator

(1788-1859)

Biographical history

James Dillon was born in Clara in 1788 to Simon and Catherine Dillon. His father, Simon, was involved in property and his mother ran a shop and also had extensive property on New St. In the 1820s and 1830s he was politically active in opposing tithes, supporting Daniel O'Connell and the cause of Catholic Emancipation. He was appointed coroner for King's County in July 1836. In 1847, the county was split into two districts and he was assigned the Tullamore district serving the northern half of the county. He had married Alice Kelly in the 1820s and they had 10 children, 6 daughters and 4 sons. He died at the age of 71 in 1859 while on the way to Edenderry to undertake another inquest. He was succeeded in the post by William A. Gowing of Tullamore.

Archival history

Content and structure area

Scope and content

Two leather-bound and embossed notebooks containing inquest reports handwritten by James Dillon, King's County Coroner. Format of inquest reports is largely identical beginning with a record of the inquest number, date, location of inquest and the name of the deceased. Then follows a list of the jurors present and witnesses called. The reports end with a verdict on the cause of death.

Appraisal, destruction and scheduling

Accruals

System of arrangement

Conditions of access and use area

Conditions governing access

Conditions governing reproduction

Language of material

Script of material

Language and script notes

Physical characteristics and technical requirements

Finding aids

Allied materials area

Existence and location of originals

A volume spanning 1846-1854 is held by Offaly Historical and Archaeological Society

Existence and location of copies

Related units of description

Publication note

Lisa Shortall, ‘Instances of death in infancy and childhood in the inquest casebooks of James
Dillon, King’s County Coroner, 1836-1859’, Offaly Heritage 10 (2018).

Notes area

Note

As Dillon numbered all his inquests, and some 386 are missing, it can be assumed a further volume containing inquest reports for the years 1840-1846 is not now extant.

Alternative identifier(s)

Access points

Subject access points

Place access points

Name access points

Genre access points

Description control area

Description identifier

Institution identifier

Rules and/or conventions used

Dates of creation revision deletion

Language(s)

Script(s)

Sources

Accession area

Related people and organizations

Related genres

Related places