The Old Mills of Aix-les-Bains

You’re now on Montée des Moulins, a place steeped in history that reveals a lesser-known side of Aix-les-Bains’ past. Beneath your feet flows an invisible stream, a witness to a fascinating story. In 1739, after a devastating fire swept through Aix-les-Bains, the authorities diverted the Chaudanne stream, which had been running too close to the precious thermal springs.

This new watercourse, called the “Moulins Stream,” powered four mills built by the Marquis of Aix: the “white mills” for grinding wheat into flour and the “brown mills” for pressing walnuts to produce oil. These mills only operated three to four months a year, when water was plentiful, at a time when Aix had barely 1,000 residents. By the 19th century, industrialization rendered these small mills obsolete, replaced by larger, more modern facilities.

In 1894, as Aix transformed into a prestigious spa town, the stream was completely covered over and the last mills vanished. The stairway you’re climbing was redesigned in 1933 with the steps and handrails you see today. The ruins ahead are the last visible traces of that industrial era.

Now, only a handful of street names keep alive the memory of those mills that once fed the local community.