1950s image from Callaway's Garden of Eden (Bristol, Florida). Photo courtesy of State Library and Archives of Florida.
The history of materializing the Bible has its stories of closed chapters, never realized visions, rumored openings, and coming soon attractions.
Closed (N=40)
- Mechanized Passion Play (Valenciennes, France), 1547. View plan (courtesy: Calvin College Hekman Library) (note: one of many 15-17th century mechanized Bible scenes built for churches)
- Jerusalem (c.1850) model (Ocean Grove, New Jersey), 1879-1959
- Holy House of Loreto replica (Montreal, Quebec), 1894-?
- Jerusalem Old City model at World's Fair (St. Louis, Missouri), 1904
- Creation exhibit (St. Louis, Missouri then Coney Island Dreamland), 1904-1911
- Jerusalem replica (Texas Centennial Exposition; Dallas), 1936
- Black Hills Passion Play (Spearfish, South Dakota), 1939-2008
- Tabernacle replica (St. Petersburg, Florida), 1948-1970 (relocated to Lancaster, Pennsylvania). Postcard
- Garden of Gethsemane replica (Los Angeles, California), c.1950 (relocated to HolyLand Exhibition in Silver Lake, California).
- Jerusalem miniature model (Wappinger Falls, New York, Mt. Alvernia Seminary), c.1950
- Bible Land, Garden of Life (Orlando, Florida), c.1950-1970. Visitor brochure
- Garden of Eden (Bristol, Florida), 1952-1981. View State of Florida archives images
- Prince of Peace Memorial Park (Silver Springs, Florida), c.1955-1975. Visitor brochure & Profile in 2006 Florida travel book
- Bible Land (Calimesa, California), 1957-c.1990. News stories from 1962 & 1964
- Holy Land, USA (Waterbury, Connecticut), 1958-1984. Read about a park employee from an old guide book and read a letter to visitors.
- Christus Gardens (Gatlinburg, Tennessee), 1960-2008 (relocated to Holy Land Experience in Orlando, Florida).
- Biblical Statue Garden (Wisconsin Dells), 1961-1997.
- Biblical and Historical Wax Museum (Salt Lake City, Utah), c.1965
- Museum of the Cross (Sarasota, Florida), 1966-1969
- Holy Land USA (Bedford, Virginia), 1972-2009
- Bible garden at San Francisco Botanical Garden (San Francisco, CA), 1975-c.1990. View 1987 guidebook (courtesy of SFBG Library)
- The Gallery of Creation: A Museum of Natural History (Social Circle, GA), 1978-2010
- Heritage USA (Fort Mill, South Carolina), 1978-1989
- Life of Christ Display (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio), c.1980-2017
- Jesus of Nazareth Passion Play (Puyallup, Washington), 1982-2007
- Golgotha Fun Park (Cave City, Kentucky): Biblical mini-golf, 1992-2002
- The Promise (Branson, Missouri), 1995-2002, 2006-2010. Theatre profile
- Trinity Via Dolorosa (Costa Mesa, California), 1999-2017
- Trinity Via Dolorosa (Hendersonville, Tennessee), closed 2017
- Trinity Via Dolorosa (Irving, Texas), 2000-2017
- Noah's Ark Biblical History Museum (Winston, Oregon), 2000-2017
- Museum of Religious Arts (Logan, Iowa): 2000-2016
- Museum of Biblical Art (New York City, New York), 2005-2015
- King's City (Eliat, Israel), 2005-2015
- Songdo Bible Park (Songdo, South Korea), August-September 2010
- Creation Store (Pensacola, Florida): Online only as of 2016
- Covenant Gardens (Eureka Springs, Arkansas): biblical garden, date unknown
- Episcopal Biblical Garden (Mount Dora, Florida): date unknown. View postcard
- Drive-Thru Bible Garden (Woodville, Georgia): date unknown
- Creation Orlando (Orlando, Florida), closed 2016
Never Was (N=6)
- Bible Park U.S.A. (Murfreesboro, Tennessee)
- Bible Story Land (Cucamonga, California)
- Holy Land at Ghost Town in the Sky (Maggie Valley, North Carolina)
- Biblical garden and Holy Land replicas (Anaheim, California)
- Holy Land, USA (Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania)
- Exploration Science Center (Port Jervis, New York)
Coming soon? (N=21)
- Morris Cerullo Legacy Center (San Diego, California)
- Northwest Science Museum (Boise, Idaho)
- Biblical Theme Park (Moose Jaw, Canada)
- Bible Museum (Bayern, Germany)
- Land of Genesis (Switzerland)
- Holy Land, USA (Waterbury, Connecticut): Closed in 1984, purchased in 2013 for renewal.
- God's Ark of Safety (Frostburg, Maryland)
- Museum of Biblical Antiquities (Salt Lake City/Provo, Utah)
- Biblical Garden (Hebron, West Bank)
- Greater Ancestors World Museum (Jacksonville, Florida)
- The Bible Ship (Germany)
- Discovery Center for Science and Earth History (Dallas, Texas)
- Dinosaur Adventure Land (Repton, Alabama)
- Creation Research of the North Coast museum (Bayside, California)
- Lost World Museum (Phoenix, New York)
- Re-created biblical Jerusalem (near Colorado Springs, Colorado)
- Museum of Biblical Archaeology (Ripon, California)
- God's World Exploration Station (Peshastin, Washington)
- Abrahamic Botanic Garden (Addis Ababa, Ethiopia)
- Genesis Park (New Hampshire)
- Bible History Museum (Branson, Missouri)