Harjukoski Mill
Harjukoski water mill from the 1870s and a miller’s cottage with outbuildings are in Ihastjärvi village on the shores of rapid Harjukoski, between lakes Kyyvesi and Harjujärvi. The water mill, with two pairs of millstones, was in active use until 1975.
In addition to the mill house, the area includes the miller’s cottage, a workshop, two traditional Finnish storehouses or aittas, and a barn. There’s also a sauna, where villagers waiting for their grain to be milled could spend the night.
All the buildings by the mill are unlined log structures with wooden shingle roofs. The millstones are natural stone and the mill’s machinery is entirely built from wood. The mill is historically valuable due to its construction technology. The cottage is in the same condition as the last miller left it.
In 1982, this significant cultural landscape became the set for Ulvova mylläri (“The Howling Miller”), a film based on Arto Paasilinna’s novel by the same name. The film’s main character was played by actor Vesa-Matti Loiri.
Photo: Old millstone and miller’s cottage. Mikkeli City Museums.
Harjukoski Mill
Ihastjärventie 261, 50970 Mikkeli
about 30 km from Mikkeli
Open:
24 June − 2 August 2025
Tue – Sat 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Free admission during opening hours.
Inquiries:
Mikkeli City Museums
Weekdays 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.
040 129 5090
museot(at)sivistys.mikkeli.fi
Mikkeli City Museums and our offices are closed for holidays: 18 – 24 Apr, 1 May, 29 May, 20 – 22 Jun, 6 Dec and 24 – 26 Dec 2025.