Roseau came from the French traders who termed the river through the area, a river of “rushes and reeds”.
Surrounding County and Canada Courthouses:
N – Manitoba, Canada
S – Beltrami County and Marshall County
W – Kittson County
Created: December 31, 1894 
County Seat:
Roseau 1895 – present
County Courthouse – Roseau
Location: 606 5th Avenue SW / 6th Street SW
Built: 1995 – 1996
Style: Modern
Architect: Thomas & Vecchi of Duluth
Contractor: Kraus-Anderson Construction Company
Description: The building faces west and is a one story red colored brick, concrete and glass structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds on the south side of the center of Roseau. The central west entrance has large columns. The building incorporates several elements from the old courthouse including the cast-iron ionic columns that frame the main entrance. On the center of the roof is a square cupola with black colored dome and clock. The roof line is flat. In the interior, the main lobby has a lighted domed ceiling. The County District Court courtroom is located on the main story. The building houses the County District Court of the 9th Judicial District. The new addition for the jail and law enforcement center was built by Industrial Contract Services.
Old County Courthouse – Roseau
Location: 216 Center Street West / 3rd Avenue SW
Built: 1913 – 1914
Style: Second Renaissance
Architect: Lignell and Loebeck of Duluth
Contractor: H Fawcett
Description: The building faces north and is a two story brown colored brick over poured concrete structure. The building sits on landscaped grounds in the center of Rosseau to the northeast of the courthouse. The north front has a central entrance with extended one story porch with fan light. The building has double windows. The roof is hipped. In the interior is a lobby at the entrance rising into the dome. The building houses offices. To the east is the old Webster Hotel which served as the first courthouse.
See: The 9th Judicial District includes Aitkin County, Beltrami County, Cass County, Clearwater County, Crow Wing County, Hubbard County, Itasca County, Kittson County, Koochiching County, Lake of the Woods County, Mahnomen County, Marshall County, Norman County, Pennington County, Red Lake County.
Second County Courthouse – Roseau
Location: 205 Center Street West / 2nd Avenue SW
Built: 1894
Style: Comercial
Architect: Unknown
Contractor: Unknown
Description: The building faces south and is a two story white colored wood structure. The rectangular shaped building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Roseau. The lower part of the building has brown colored siding. The roof line is flat. In 1898 the building was purchased and remodeled to serve as the second courthouse. Later the building became the Budd Hospital and then a commercial building.
History: The county was created in 1894 and Roseau was selected as the county seat in 1895. The first courthouse was a building across the street from the old Helgenson Mortuary. In 1898 the county purchased and remodeled the two story Webster Hotel in Roseau for $1300 as the second courthouse4. The building still stands at 205 Center Street and 2nd Avenue. The third courthouse was built in 1913 to 1914 and cost $21,139. The fourth courthouse was constructed in 1995 to 1996.
County Courthouse – Roseau
County District Court courtroom
Old County Courthouse – Roseau
Second County Courthouse – Roseau
Photos taken 2006, 2007, 2010 and 2023