Historic Yates Mill County Park

Historic Yates Mill County Park is a 174-acre Wake County park on Lake Wheeler Road south of downtown Raleigh, built around a water-powered gristmill that dates to about 1756. A 1778 survey is the first known document that records the mill as already standing.

Of the seventy gristmills that once served Wake County, this is the only one left in operating condition, and visitors can watch it grind. The A.E. Finley Center holds a 2,200-square-foot exhibit hall, and a flat loop trail circles the millpond. Admission, the visitor center and the mill tours are all free, and parking is on site. Guided tours and open houses are seasonal.