Cullen Gardens & Miniature Village was a popular tourist attraction in Whitby, Ontario, Canada. Officially opened in May 1980 by founder Len Cullen and his wife Connie, the Gardens were a major tourist attraction in Whitby for 25 years. [1]
Cullen Gardens & Miniature Village was a popular tourist attraction in Whitby, Ontario, Canada. Officially opened in May 1980 by founder Len Cullen and his wife Connie, the Gardens were a major tourist attraction in Whitby for 25 years. [1]
Cullen Gardens combined the natural beauty of floral displays and gardens, along with a unique southern Ontario-themed miniature village. The miniature village included many houses and trains that would travel around and between the houses. Other features included radio-controlled miniature boats. It was an entertaining attraction for both children and adults. In 1983, the Miniature Village served as the filming location for an episode of the Canadian television series The Littlest Hobo , entitled "Small Pleasures" (season 4, episode 16).
During the Winter holiday season, Cullen Gardens was host to the Festival of Lights, which featured huge displays of Christmas lights throughout the grounds, often decorating large topiaries.
On 1 January 2006, Cullen Gardens and Miniature Village closed. The land, however, has since been purchased by the Town of Whitby, to remain in the public domain as a municipal park. There has been speculation that the property may link up with the Heber Down conservation area. At the time of its closure, the park was co-owned by Sue Cullen-Green and Bryan Green.
The miniature Village no longer exists at the site and the model buildings were sold to the nearby City of Oshawa for $234,000. Oshawa later put them up for sale again rather than opening an attraction of its own, citing budgetary austerity. [2] The golf course formerly attached to Cullen Gardens has ceased to operate
The miniature buildings were purchased by the Niagara Parks Commission in 2012. Many of the miniature buildings are now on display at the NPC's Botanical Gardens in Niagara Falls, Ontario. [3]
In November 2011, the Town entered into a purchase and sale agreement with Auberge et Spa Le Nordik Inc. of Chelsea, Quebec. Le Nordik bought the main building and 3 hectares of land. They intend to use the main building and outdoor area to build a year-round heat therapy spa with two restaurants, a retail boutique and a small conference area. The remaining land was designated as open space and parkland, known as Cullen Central Park. The deal closed in 2013 and the spa was supposed to open in 2015. [4]
On October 6, 2022, Thermëa spa opened on the site, after multiple delays. [5]
Oshawa is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the Lake Ontario shoreline. It lies in Southern Ontario, approximately 60 km (37 mi) east of Downtown Toronto. It is commonly viewed as the eastern anchor of the Greater Toronto Area and of the Golden Horseshoe. It is the largest municipality in the Regional Municipality of Durham. The name Oshawa originates from the Ojibwa term aazhawe, meaning "the crossing place" or just "a cross".
Whitby is a town in Durham Region. Whitby is located in Southern Ontario east of Ajax and west of Oshawa, on the north shore of Lake Ontario and is home to the headquarters of Durham Region. It had a population of 138,501 at the 2021 census. It is approximately 45 km (28 mi) east of Toronto, and it is known as a commuter suburb in the Durham Region, east of the Greater Toronto Area. While the southern portion of Whitby is predominantly urban and an economic hub, the northern part of the municipality is more rural and includes the communities of Ashburn, Brooklin, Myrtle, Myrtle Station, and Macedonian Village.
The Regional Municipality of Durham, informally referred to as Durham Region, is a regional municipality in Southern Ontario, Canada. Located east of Toronto and the Regional Municipality of York, Durham forms the east-end of the Greater Toronto Area and part of the Golden Horseshoe region. It has an area of approximately 2,500 km2 (970 sq mi). The regional government is headquartered in Whitby.
Ontario County was the name of two historic counties in the Canadian province of Ontario. Both counties were located in approximately the same area and existed on-and-off between 1792 and 1974. Their primary modern successor is the Regional Municipality of Durham, though certain parts of them were transferred to other surrounding regions.
Durham Region Transit (DRT) is the regional public transit operator in Durham Region, Ontario, Canada, east of Toronto. Its headquarters are at 110 Westney Road South in Ajax, Ontario, and there are regional centres in Ajax, Whitby, and Oshawa. DRT was formed by the merger of Ajax/Pickering Transit, Whitby Transit, Oshawa Transit, and Clarington Transit on January 1, 2006.
Oshawa is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that is represented in the House of Commons of Canada. It currently consists of the City of Oshawa south of Taunton Road. Historically, the riding was dominated by a working-class electorate.
Clifton Hill is one of the major tourist promenades in Niagara Falls, Ontario. The street, close to Niagara Falls and the Niagara River, leads from River Road on the Niagara Parkway to intersect with Victoria Avenue, and contains a number of gift shops, wax museums, haunted houses, video arcades, restaurants, hotels and themed attractions. It is a major amusement area and centre for night life, particularly for families and teenagers.
A miniature park is a display of miniature buildings and models, usually as a recreational and tourist attraction open to the public. A miniature park may contain a model of a single city or town, often called a miniature city or model village, or it can contain a number of different sets of models.
The Niagara Parks Commission, commonly shortened to Niagara Parks, is an agency of the Government of Ontario which maintains the Ontario shoreline of the Niagara River.
Journey Behind the Falls is an attraction in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada located in the Table Rock Centre beside the Canadian Horseshoe Falls. It is open year round and run by the Niagara Parks Commission.
WWE Niagara Falls was a retail store located in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada. It was owned and operated by Canadian Niagara Hotels Inc., with its name and branding being licensed by the WWE. It was the second WWE establishment to open up after The World in 1999, and the first WWE establishment to open outside of the United States. After The World closed in 2003, it became the only official WWE retail store in the world.
The Niagara Falls Museum, in Niagara Falls, Ontario, was founded by Thomas Barnett in 1827. After a number of moves and varying fortunes it closed in 1998. The museum is known for housing the mummy of Ramesses I for 140 years before its return to Egypt in 2003.
Robert Alan Attersley was a well known Canadian ice hockey player who competed in the 1960 Winter Olympics. He was born in Oshawa, Ontario, to Ernest and Marietta Attersley. During his lifetime he owned and operated several businesses and had a political career which extended to being the mayor of Whitby.
Queen Victoria Park is the main parkland located in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada opposite the American and Canadian Horseshoe Falls. Established by the Niagara Falls Park Act in 1885 and opened in 1888, the park is operated by the Niagara Parks Commission and is considered the centerpiece of the Niagara Falls recreational tourist area.
Whitby—Oshawa was a provincial electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that was represented in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from the 2007 provincial election until 2018. The riding was adjusted by the 2015 Representation Act for the 2018 provincial election, losing some territory to the district of Oshawa, and replaced as the district of Whitby.
Riverside Park is an 80-acre (32-hectare) park located by the northern part of Woolwich Street in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. It is built around a portion of the Speed River that runs through Guelph.
Saint Arsenije Sremac Serbian Orthodox Church is a Serbian Orthodox church located in Whitby, Ontario, Canada.
Tivoli Miniature World was a theme park devoted to displaying 1/50 scale miniature fiberglass replicas of over 75 famous buildings from around the world.
Little Canada, previously known as Our Home and Miniature Land, is a tourist attraction located in the basement of The Tenor, near Yonge–Dundas Square in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its entrance is located next to Dollarama and across from both an entrance to Dundas station of the Toronto subway and The Beer Store. Little Canada contains HO scale replicas of natural and man-made structures located throughout Canada, including Golden Horseshoe, Niagara Falls, Ottawa, Quebec City, and Toronto.