Upplandsmuseet tells the story of Uppsala and Uppland from its home in Akademikvarnen, a former watermill on the Fyris River. The mill’s own history—from medieval grain production and university monopoly to a 1959 museum opening—makes the building part of the collection.
Quick facts
Watermills stood on the island by the 1280s; in 1647 Queen Christina transferred the mill toll revenue to Uppsala University.
The present Akademikvarnen was built in 1766–1768, expanded in the mid-nineteenth century, and operated as a mill until 1946.
Upplandsmuseet was founded in 1909 and opened in Akademikvarnen in 1959 after the mill was converted for museum use.
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Upplandsmuseet is housed in Akademikvarnen, the former Academy Mill built on an island in the Fyris River below Uppsala Cathedral. The building’s old purpose is still legible in its setting: the river passes through channels beneath it, and the stone-lined banks and mill bridge frame a site that once helped feed the city. Today the county museum uses this same place to tell the stories of Uppsala and the wider Uppland region.
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