Muncie, IN, first saw rail service with the arrival of the Cincinnati, Richmond and Muncie Railroad, whose passenger station was erected in 1901; this puts the arrival of railroads probably around the same time. The line was purchased by the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway in 1910, who discontinued passenger service to the town in 1949. The line was abandoned and removed around 1994; today, the bridge and the former right-of-way serves to carry the Cardinal Greenway Trail, which will follow the ex-C&O ROW all the way to Richmond, IN, about 40 miles away.

A second railroad line also ran through Muncie; the Pennsylvania Railroad gained access to Mathews, (10 miles to the north), from their connection with the New York Central at Anderson (15 miles west). This isolated segment of PRR trackage was accessed at Anderson via trackage rights on the NYC. This line was abandoned in the 1970s.