Raindale Mill
Raindale Mill is open on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 11am-2pm.
Please note this is volunteer dependant. If you’d like to check whether the Mill is open on the day of your visit please call us on 01904 687687.
Relax in our peaceful riverside area where you can explore the bank of the River Foss, find out more about life in a Victorian watermill and admire the ruins of the walls of York Castle.
This whole area was replanted during early 2012 and new pathways were created along the bank for visitors to explore.
At its centre is Raindale Mill, a Victorian watermill which was brought to York in the 1960s from the North York Moors where it served Newton-upon-Rawcliffe and the surrounding villages.
It has been brought back into working order as part of the 2012 improvements. Trained volunteers operate the waterwheel, powered by a mill pond which uses water from the river below. Please contact the Museum in advance of your visit to find out when the wheel will be in operation.
Even when the mill is not in operation, visitors can look inside the mill.
Further along the bank they will find a cottage-style garden, a wild flower meadow and native trees including holly, elder, field maple, hawthorn and birch.
Between the Riverside area and the museum are some of the remains of York Castle.
York Castle was once the biggest castle in the north of England, though so little of it remains it is difficult to imagine its size.
The southern gateway and curtain wall which remain can be seen in our Riverside area, giving just some idea of its scale.
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