Monrovia

Small Town Breakdown

1,000 towns, Day 7. The Get Indiana crew drove to Morgan County and stopped for breakfast in Monrovia, town No. 63 on the journey. With just over 2,000 residents, Monrovia checks every box as an Indiana small town with a bit of charm, some claim to fame, and the perfect amount of Hoosier hospitality.

Fast Facts

📍LOCATION: Central Indiana

• Monrovia is located in northern Morgan County.

• State Road 42 runs east-west through town as Main Street, leading northeast to Mooresville and west to the unincorporated communities of Crown Center and Little Point.

• State Road 39 runs north-south through town as Chestnut Street, providing access to I-70 two miles north and leading south to Martinsville.

• 30 minutes southwest of Indianapolis

• 45 minutes north of Bloomington

👥 POPULATION & RANKING

• 2,322 residents (as of 2024)

• Ranks as Indiana’s 201st-largest city

• Fourth-largest incorporated town/city in Morgan County behind Martinsville (11,952), Mooresville (10,027), and Brooklyn (2,595)

📏 LAND AREA

• 1.8 square miles

📅 FOUNDED

• Morgan County was organized on January 2, 1822.

• It was named for Revolutionary War hero General Daniel Morgan.

• Martinsville was selected as the county seat.

• Monrovia was platted in 1834 but didn’t become incorporated until 1995.

🏥 MAIN INDUSTRIES: Logistics, Warehousing & Distribution, Small Business, Agriculture

• Westpoint Business Park located off I-70 just north of Monrovia is on 555 acres and has 10 buildings ranging from 120,000 square feet to over 1 million square feet. Love’s, Deckers Brands, and Stryker are a few of the distributors there.

Legendary Coach

Emmett “Branch” McCracken was born in Monrovia in 1908 and helped the Monrovia High School basketball team win county championships in 1925 and ‘26. Nicknamed the “Big Bear” because of his 6-foot-4 size and tendency to scowl, the ferocious competitor earned three letters playing for Indiana University from 1928–30, was Big Ten MVP in 1928, led the Hoosiers in scoring all three seasons, and was a consensus All-American in 1930.

When his playing career ended, he became head coach at Ball State University from 1930–38 and IU from 1938–65 (excluding ‘44 and ‘45 when he served in the Navy during WWII), where he won NCAA titles in 1940 and ‘53, and compiled a win-loss record of 450-231 in 32 seasons overall. McCracken was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1960, the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame in 1963, and the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006.

His legend lives on locally, with the gymnasium at Monrovia High School dedicated in his honor in 1971.

Cow Patty Bingo

If you’re visiting in September, catch the annual Monrovia Festival set for Sept. 11–13, 2026. It begins with the Alma Smock Memorial Art Show, vendors, and entertainment on Friday, followed by Cow Patty Bingo, a kiddie tractor pull, petting zoo, and food vendors on Saturday, and parade on Sunday.

Farm Fresh

Shopping for farm-fresh products? Henderson Farm Store is open Tuesday thru Friday from 4 – 7 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. Their steaks, roasts, and ground beef are from cattle raised on Henderson land and local Indiana farms, plus they’ve got pasture-raised pork, fresh eggs, dairy, and more available.

Monrovia’s Menu

Your morning in Monrovia begins at Farm House Brew. They’ve got coffee, tea, smoothies, cider, and hot chocolate, locally sourced bakery items including scones, cupcakes, cookies, and muffins, plus favorites like biscuits and gravy and cinnamon rolls. They’ve got 4.8 stars on Google with many reviews raving about their breakfast sandwiches and atmosphere. We tried the breakfast sandwich on bagels with cream cheese and they lived up to the hype.

Monrovia Family Restaurant is next on the list serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner, with locals loving the corned beef hash, tenderloin, ranchero skillet, loaded French toast, and Texas fajitas. They have 4.5 stars among nearly 250 Google reviews.

Main Street Grill has two locations, one in Monrovia and the other in Mooresville. It has racked up over 550 Google reviews and 4.3 stars, with many giving their approval to Indiana’s staple – the tenderloin sandwich. It’s also the spot to grab a drink and catch the game. Plus, on Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday, order a custom-made pizza or one of their signature options like cheeseburger, chicken alfredo, or BBQ chicken.

Gridiron Glory

The mascot for Monrovia High School is the Bulldogs, and they’ve won one IHSAA state championship in school history.

The state title came in the fall of 2015, when Monrovia defeated Whiting 33-6 in the 2A football championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium. They were also 2A runner-ups in 2009, falling 24-17 to Fort Wayne Bishop Luers.

One Monrovia local who wasn’t on either of those teams? John Standeford, who made a name for himself as one of the best wide receivers in Big Ten history.

He finished his collegiate career (2000-03) with the Purdue Boilermakers as the all-time Big Ten leader with 266 receptions and 3,788 receiving yards, marks that have since been broken. As a junior, Standeford was a semifinalist for the Biletnikoff Award, presented to the nation’s most outstanding receiver. As a pro, he caught 16 passes in two seasons for the Detroit Lions.

More on Monrovia

• Full Circle Sports is a full-service complex that provides lessons in hitting, pitching, catching, defense, speed, agility, and conditioning for young ballplayers.

• Established in 2001, Dawg House Pizza is a dinner-only option for ‘za and breadsticks Monday thru Saturday.

Check out Nate’s breakdown of Monrovia ⬇️