Holy Land USA, Waterbury, Connecticut, United States

Holy Land USA was an 18-acre (7.3 ha) theme park in Waterbury, Connecticut, inspired by selected passages from the Bible. It consists of a chapel, stations of the cross and replicas of catacombs and Israelite villages constructed from cinder blocks, bathtubs, and other discards. The park has been closed to the public since 1984, but its grounds remain intact.
Creation and peak years
Holy Land USA was conceived by John Baptist Greco, a Waterbury-based attorney. Greco, a Roman Catholic, organized a volunteer organization called Companions of Christ, with the purpose of creating an attraction that would replicate the Bethlehem and Jerusalem of the Biblical era. Bob Chinn, the grounds chairman at Holy Land USA, recalled Greco’s mission in a 2001 interview with The New York Times: "He was a very spiritual man. He wanted to do this for the people of the community. He felt no one, no matter the race, creed or color, should be separated. He wanted a place for all people to sit and be peaceful."