Tide Mill Museum

The Tide Mill Living Museum stands beside the River Deben in the Suffolk market town of Woodbridge. A mill has occupied this site since the late 12th century, but the striking white weatherboarded building visitors see today dates from 1793. It is one of only a handful of working tide mills left in the United Kingdom and continues to grind flour using the power of the rising and falling tide, just as it has for centuries.

Inside, four floors of exhibits explain how the mill harnesses water trapped at high tide in a millpond behind the building, releasing it to drive the great waterwheel and an intricate arrangement of wooden gears, shafts and millstones. Working demonstrations take place on days when the tide allows, and visitors can usually buy bags of stoneground flour milled on site. Interpretation panels and short films trace the mill's long history, its near-collapse in the 1960s and its careful restoration by volunteers.

The setting beside Woodbridge's tidal quay, with sailing barges and yachts moored close by, is part of the appeal. The mill sits a short walk from Woodbridge railway station, making it an easy visit by public transport from Ipswich.