• William Packard began making cars in Warren in 1899.antique rear view mirror on packard image by Jorge Moro from Fotolia.com
  
  The late 20th century was hard on Warren and other steel belt cities across eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania, but its magnificent history still stands along the banks of the Mahoning River. Warren, the former capital of the Connecticut Western Reserve, was a safe haven along the Underground Railroad and an auto industry powerhouse for nearly 100 years. Pieces of the past, from the National Packard Museum to downtown's Saratoga Restaurant, are everywhere.
  
  

National Packard Museum

• Early auto aficionados and history buffs, this museum's for you. The first Packard hit the road in 1899 and the Packard Motor Car Company was founded in 1902. The National Packard Museum, opened in 1999 on the grounds of the former Packard Park Pool, showcases a century of American car and motorcycle history. The building incorporates the park's original pool house. Just across the parking lot is W.D. Packard Music Hall, and down the hill is the 42-acre Packard Park on the banks of the Mahoning River.
  
  National Packard Museum
  1899 Mahoning Ave. NW
  Warren, OH 44483
  330-394-8484
  packardmuseum.org
  
  

Millionaires' Row

• Mahoning Avenue is lined with Victorian-style homes and mansions built by area bigwigs in the mid to late 1800s. Many of these former homes now house city and county offices and are open to the public weekdays. The Perkins Mansion, once the most lavish estate in town with its marble fireplaces, stained-glass sky light and hand-cut chandeliers, has been Warren's City Hall since 1934. The Fine Arts Council of Trumbull County publishes the self-guided walking tour map, "A Walk along Historic Mahoning Avenue," sold at the downtown Tourism Office. The walk begins at Trumbull County Courthouse and continues more than a mile to the National Packard Museum.
  
  Trumbull County Tourism Bureau
  321 Mahoning Ave.
  Warren, OH 44483
  330-675-3081
  exploretrumbullcounty.com
  
  

David Grohl Alley

• Foo Fighters front man and former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl drew his first breaths at Warren's Trumbull Memorial Hospital. In 2009 the city officially gave the rocker not just his own star, but the the key to the city and his very own alley. David Grohl Alley in downtown Warren is packed with art inspired by Grohl and executed by local artists. Grohl actually moved early on from Warren to Virginia, where he was raised, but his father and other family members still live nearby.
  
  

The Saratoga Restaurant

• Step back in time downtown at the Saratoga Restaurant, just around the corner from the Trumbull County Courthouse. The walls of this early 20th century landmark are still lined with dark wood booths, circa 1928. Locals love this longstanding gem for its homemade comfort food and friendly service. The Saratoga opened in 1916. Three generations of the Economos family have run the place since Harry and Nick Economos bought it in 1935.
  
  The Saratoga
  129 E. Market St.
  Warren, OH 44483
  330-393-6646
  warrensaratoga.com