Ball State University began as a small, private teacher training school that opened in 1899. The early campus and buildings were purchased by the Ball brothers--five Muncie industrialists--and given to the state of Indiana in 1918.
In 1922, in recognition of the generosity of the Ball family, the Indiana General Assembly changed the school's name to Ball Teachers College. The institution became a university in 1965 in recognition of its growth in enrollment, physical facilities, and the variety and quality of its educational programs.
Learn more in our historical walking tour.
