Nový Mlýn

Nový Mlýn is the ruined site of a former watermill on the river Odra, tucked deep inside the Libavá Military Training Area in northern Moravia. The remains sit on the right bank of the Odra, right beside the old millrace and a bridge over the river, at the foot of a rise called Novomlýnský vrch, close to where the Podleský stream flows into the Odra. It's one of many settlements this region lost from the map after 1945 — today reaching it is only possible under special circumstances, since the surrounding land belongs to a closed military zone.

What exactly is this place, and where is it?

Nový Mlýn lies in the Odra Hills (Oderské vrchy), in the Olomouc district of the Olomouc Region, within what is now the Libavá Military Training Area. Administratively, the mill once belonged to the vanished village of Rudoltovice. Its coordinates are roughly 49.74142 N, 17.61603 E. Alongside the Czech name "Nový Mlýn" ("New Mill"), the site was also known by its German names, Neumühle or Schwarzmühle — the latter most likely tied to the family name of an owner.

What did the mill look like before it vanished?

The complex combined a watermill with a sawmill, powered by two water wheels fed from an overhead millrace channel drawing water from the Odra. Pairing a grain mill with a sawmill under one roof was common for settlements in the Odra Hills valleys, where the terrain's drop and steady river flow could drive both millstones and saw blades at once. Records show that as late as 1930, the mill was owned by a Mr. Schwarz.

Why did the mill disappear?

The fate of Nový Mlýn is tied directly to the history of the wider Libavá area. After the Second World War, the German-speaking population of the region was expelled, and Czechoslovak authorities established a large military training ground here. Rudoltovice, the village the mill administratively belonged to, along with the mill buildings themselves, ceased to exist as a civilian settlement — the site was abandoned and absorbed into the military exercise zone, where it remains today. This is a fate shared by dozens of villages, hamlets and isolated farmsteads across Libavá, making the area one of the parts of the Czech Republic with the highest concentration of settlements erased in the second half of the 20th century.

What's left of the mill today?

What remains today is essentially ruins — foundations and scattered remnants of the buildings next to the old millrace and the bridge over the Odra. The site has been reclaimed by forest, and because it sits inside an active military training ground, it isn't set up for visitors: there are no marked trails leading straight to the ruins, no signage, and no visitor infrastructure.

Can you actually go and see it?

The Libavá Military Training Area is closed to public access on a day-to-day basis, and entry requires military permission. The one regular exception is an annual cycling-tourism event called "Bílý kámen" ("White Stone"), when the training area administration opens part of the grounds to visitors — this is effectively the only recurring legal way to get near the mill ruins. Outside that event, entering the training area without authorization is not permitted.

Frequently asked questions

Was Nový Mlýn a village, or just a mill? It was a single working site — a watermill combined with a sawmill — not a village in its own right. Administratively it belonged to the now-vanished village of Rudoltovice.

Which river was the mill on? The Odra, on its right bank, next to the millrace and a bridge, close to where the Podleský stream joins the river.

Why was the mill abandoned? After 1945, the German-speaking population of the region was expelled, and the area was turned into the Libavá Military Training Area, which ended civilian settlement here.

Can visitors enter the training area to see the ruins? Not normally — the zone is closed and requires permission. The annual "Bílý kámen" cycling event is the exception, opening part of the area to the public once a year.