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'''Dexter''' is a city in [[Stoddard County, Missouri|Stoddard County]], [[Missouri]]. It is the largest community in the county, with a population of 7,864 at the 2010 Census.
'''Dexter''' is a city in [[Stoddard County, Missouri|Stoddard County]], [[Missouri]]. It is the largest community in the county, with a population of 7,864 at the 2010 Census.
==History==
Settlement in the Dexter area began in the early 1850s, but did not occur on a large scale at this time, as it was located closer to the unhealthy swamps in the southern part of the county and away from the more established region around [[Bloomfield, Missouri|Bloomfield]].
After the [[Civil War]], plans resumed for the construction of an east-west railroad that would connect the [[Ozarks]] with [[Cairo, Illinois]] and the vital [[Mississippi River]] trade. Work on a railroad had begun in 1859 but was halted by the outbreak of war. Eventually named the Cairo, Arkansas, and Texas Railroad, it was gradually extended west to [[Poplar Bluff, Missouri|Poplar Bluff]], the first train operating in September 1873.
The arrival of the railroad spurred settlement of the south-central portion of Stoddard County, and in 1873, Liberty Township was organized, with lots being sold for the creation of a town in the center, near the new railroad depot. According to most accounts, the new community was dubbed "Dexter" in honor of a race horse belonging to one Mr. Dex, a prominent landowner in the area. The first lots were sold on July 4, 1873, considered to be the official "founding" of Dexter.
[[Category:Missouri Cities and Towns]]
[[Category:Missouri Cities and Towns]]