The first stop on this weekend’s Indiana road trip was in Muncie. A guy I went to high school with lives in Muncie now and kindly volunteered to give me a tour of his town.

The beautiful thing about seeing a place with a local is that they know their way around and can answer questions about local life. It was too rainy and cold to spend too much time outside but Justin did a great job showing me around.

Highlights of the day included lunch at Cammack Station which was once a filling station turned into a vintage gas and car themed wonderland. Then there was a visit to Minnetrista which is home to the Bob Ross Experience.

We also made a few stops for some cool photo ops.

Muncie is home to Ball State University. The college was founded by the five Ball brothers, industrialists and philanthropists who you may know for their Ball Canning Jars. They moved their manufacturing from Niagara Falls, New York to Muncie in 1887 during Indiana’s natural gas boom.

The Ball name is all over the city including at Minnetrista, a cultural center on the grounds of the old Ball family homes. All but one of their grand homes along the White River survive and some are open to the public for events and activities.

One was transformed into Bob Ross’ studio when he was filming his PBS program. That’s another story for another day.

The city was once a hub for car manufacturers too. Those good jobs dried up and the plants are long gone, leaving behind acres of industrial wasteland as far as the eye can see. They’re surrounded by a lot of struggling and closed businesses including the neighborhood watering holes where all those workers once gathered.

Still, car culture is alive and well in Muncie. There’s a car dealership, used car lot, auto parts store and mechanic on seemingly every corner. Car shows seem to be a regular occurrence here too.

The city boasts some gorgeous old homes, a lively downtown and plenty of things to do thanks to the university and the efforts of others to bring culture and fun to the community. That’s one of the best qualities of a college town.

I liked Muncie a lot. The mix of old and new is appealing. There are railroad tracks everywhere and opportunity to see trains at all hours. I was excited to see three trains, including one that held up traffic on a main thoroughfare for several minutes Saturday morning.

People here are friendly too. It’s easy to strike up a conversation. They want to know what brought you to town and are happy to help. Here I made friends with a couple in an antique mall and received help from someone at Indiana’s prized restaurant chain Pizza King.

I would absolutely like to return for another weekend when the weather is nicer. The Cardinal Greenway, Indiana’s longest rail trail, is calling my name and I would like to ditch the car for a walk around town. They have a festival in a historic neighborhood every September. That might be a good time for a visit.

Keep checking back. I’ll show you more about Muncie before we move on to the next stop on this road trip.