Contributed by Brenda Mackey
Graduate Assistant, Research Publications
Sponsored Programs Office, Ball State University
Anyone familiar with Muncie’s nickname “Middletown” has
heard that our town is emblematic of the American experience. The original Middletown studies, conducted in the 1920s, analyzed Muncie’s transition from a
farming town to an industrial town. Since the close of the Borg Warner plant in
2009, Muncie has been experiencing another shift, deindustrializing and moving to
a newly globalizing economy.
Prof. Jim Connolly, director of the Center for Middletown Studies and professor of history, spent the Spring 2013 semester in Germany as
a guest professor. When he presented about Middletown, the groups of German
academics most often wanted to know about the local response in Muncie to the
studies. The response of Muncie residents varied from enthusiasm (“We represent
America!”) to resentment (“I don’t want to be ‘average.’”). His German
audiences told Connolly that the Middletown studies confirmed American
stereotypes: white, protestant, individualistic and ignoring race. They also
expressed surprise that the American government would allow a decline like the
one Muncie is now experiencing to happen.
Muncie changed dramatically between 1890 and 1925, but not
in the cultural sense. While technology changed daily life, the philosophy of
the people of Muncie remained the same, placing high value on individualism,
limited government and religion. Whether those values will persist through
Muncie’s current transition remains to be seen.
