Fantasy Gardens
former amusement park in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada
Fantasy Gardens, also known as Fantasy Garden World, was an amusement park in Richmond, British Columbia that was located at the corner of Steveston Highway and No. 5 Road. The park was called Fantasy Gardens because it was surrounded by a series of stone buildings that were designed to resemble structures built during the Middle Ages. The buildings had been used as a backdrop in numerous music videos, television productions, and movies (it stood in for Halloweentown in Halloweentown II: Kalabar's Revenge).
Behind the stone buildings were the Biblical Gardens. These gardens were filled with numerous religious icons, including a hedge that had been carved into the shape of a Bible.
History
As garden centre
Fantasy Gardens was home to a massive plant store in the Art Knapp's chain, owned by Frank Van Hest (1932-2005) in 1965. Bill Vander Zalm's son Wim owned several other stores in the Art Knapp's chain. Many people visited the store to get a glimpse of its turtle-filled pond. This plant store closed its location at Fantasy Gardens, moving to a vacant nursery one mile west along Alderbridge Way and Minoru Boulevard.
The public source identifies “Fantasy Gardens” as former amusement park in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Fantasy, Gardens and former.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Fantasy Gardens”, the useful work is to connect “former amusement park in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
The strongest evidence will usually combine a dated visual record with documents produced by the authority responsible for the place. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 16, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q5434298. Authority coordinates are 49.135, -123.090. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1932, 2005 and 1965.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Fantasy Gardens”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Fantasy Gardens primary sources, Fantasy Gardens archive and Fantasy research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Fantasy Gardens”?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Fantasy Gardens” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.