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Philips’s Magical Paradise in Giroux, Manitoba
Update: This museum permanently closed in September 2018.
Off the beaten track in the southern Manitoba hamlet of Giroux, you’ll find an off-beat, quirky museum dedicated to preserving Canada’s magical heritage. Philip’s Magical Paradise was created by Gordon and Marilyn Hornan in memory of their youngest son Philip.
Philip Hornan was a boy who loved magic and performed magic tricks himself. He was diagnosed with cancer when he was 10 years old and died five years later in 1986. A dying wish was that his parents make a special room for all to see and enjoy what he enjoyed doing most. They turned the Giroux United Church, built in 1904, into a museum and called it Philip’s Magical Paradise. It contains Philip’s magic and other tricks and illusions, as well as artifacts donated by magicians across North America.

Cell from the old Steinbach jail
Philip was mentored by escape artist Dean Gunnarson. They practiced their escape skills at police detachment jails in nearby towns. Philip would ask to be handcuffed and placed into a cell from which he would escape, usually in a matter of minutes. There are several letters in the museum from police detachments acknowledging his escape feats.

Photo of Dean Gunnarson and Philip Hornan

I recently visited the RCMP Heritage Centre in Regina. I think there are more handcuffs on display in Philip’s Magical Paradise than at the RCMP museum.
The museum is unusual, funny, and somewhat creepy. I jumped when a piano started playing on its own. I stared at an optical illusion picture until I saw a unicorn. The eyes of a man in a picture followed me as I walked past. The trick mirrors were less than flattering.

These eyes follow you!
The small museum is so crammed with memorabilia it is difficult to take it all in. Marilyn Hornan walked through the museum with me. She made my visit more interesting than it would have been on my own by pointing out things I might have missed and providing background stories.

A rabbit pulling a man out of a hat

Some of the displays are just silly bits of fun. Marilyn Hornan played up the warnings before I opened this basket.
Philip’s Magical Paradise is open June 1 to the end of September on Saturdays and Sundays from 1 to 6 pm. It is open Monday to Friday by appointment or by chance. If you visit during regular Saturday or Sunday hours there is a chance you’ll find the door locked and a sign directing you to go two driveways down to the Hornan house. This happened to me. Marilyn then came and opened the museum.
After being around for twenty-eight years, this museum is now closed. When I visited it was unclear how much longer the museum would be open. Gordon Hornan was no longer alive and Marilyn was keeping the museum going on her own. She told me she planned to do that as long as she was able.
The museum was a tribute to her son and the magic he loved. In the words of the Hornan family in the museum brochure, “Always believe in the magic of your dreams.”
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14 Comments
Ken Dowell
August 13, 2017 at 1:36 pmSuch an amazing way to keep the memory of their son alive. It is most literally a mom and pop museum.
Donna Janke
August 18, 2017 at 9:04 amKen, a mom and pop museum indeed!
Anita and Richard @ No Particular Place To Go
August 13, 2017 at 3:31 pmYou can’t help but be moved by the Hornan’s tribute to their son and their work in sharing his hobby with others. The portrait of the man with the eyes that follow you is creepy but I especially liked the rabbit pulling a man out of a hat!
Donna Janke
August 18, 2017 at 9:05 amAnita, it was a creepy feeling to have the eyes follow me, but other things in the museum were amusing (like the rabbit pulling the man out of a hat).
Jeri Walker (@JeriWB)
August 14, 2017 at 6:36 pmPhilip’s Magical Paradise sounds quite magical. Off-the-beaten path museums can quite often be great. What a wonderful tribute to a young son who fought cancer.
Donna Janke
August 18, 2017 at 9:06 amJeri, the museum is a wonderful tribute. Off-the-beaten track museums can be great because they are often works of love and passion.
Doreen Pendgracs
August 15, 2017 at 8:12 amThx for alerting me to this museum, Donna! I’d not previously heard of it before. These quirky little museums can definitely touch a nerve!
Donna Janke
August 18, 2017 at 9:07 amDoreen, I’d heard of the museum a few years ago but only got around to visiting this year.
RoseMary Griffith
August 17, 2017 at 3:44 pmUtter sweetness, Donna. I admire them for taking a tragic circumstance and making something fun for people to enjoy.
Donna Janke
August 18, 2017 at 9:08 amRoseMary, I think a lot of work and love went into the museum.
Linda
August 17, 2017 at 4:43 pmA lot of emotions captured in this wonderful tribute to Philip Hornan. Thank you for sharing, Donna.
Donna Janke
August 20, 2017 at 8:20 amLinda, I hadn’t thought of the museum specifically in those terms, but you’re right – there are a lot of emotions in the museum and the story behind it.
Agness of aTukTuk
August 18, 2017 at 5:25 pmWow! This seems like an outstanding place, Donna! Is there an entrance fee?
Donna Janke
August 20, 2017 at 8:21 amAgness, there is no entrance fee,but donations are gratefully accepted.