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History · Dexter

Dexter’s post office opened in 1870, and 17% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1889 on and the census since 1880.

1870first post office
0on the National Register
17%homes built before 1940
3famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Dexter began

When was Dexter founded?

1870

The Dexter post office opened in 1870, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 146 in 18802020 census: 224156 years
Founding year: the first Dexter post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Dexter’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Dexter are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18893 editions of the USGS map, 1889 to 1985. Watch Dexter change.Boom and bustPeaked at 512 in 1910; 224 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Dexter’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Dexter’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Dexter on the map, 1889 to 1985

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Dexter. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Dexter on the 1889 USGS mapDexter on the 1962 USGS mapDexter on the 1985 USGS map1889Burden sheet · 1:125,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Dexter.

People over time

Dexter, census by census

010020030040050018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 512

Peaked at 512 in 1910; 224 people lived here in 2020.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Dexter’s Wikipedia page.

The story

How Dexter came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Dexter.

Read it all →

The first post office at Dexter was established in July, 1870.

Platted in 1875, Dexter is named for a trotting horse belonging to Robert Bonner of New York.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Dexter in 1901

Passages that mention Dexter, cut from the printed page as they were published.

study of law and was admitted to the bar in 1867. He practiced in that state three years and also filled the office of county Assessor four years, then in 1870 he came to Kansas and located at Dexter. It is to Mr. McDermott that the credit is due for having started the now thrifty little town of De…
History of Cowley County, Kansas1901 · page 88Read the page →
Read the text

study of law and was admitted to the bar in 1867. He practiced in that state three years and also filled the office of county Assessor four years, then in 1870 he came to Kansas and located at Dexter. It is to Mr. McDermott that the credit is due for having started the now thrifty little town of Dexter. He was the builder of the first house on that town sight. His residence in that town was limited to seven years, he then removed to Winfield where he has since resided and followed

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Timeline

Dexter, 1870 to 1972

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1870Post officeThe Dexter post office opens
  3. 1889On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  4. 1894Born hereGeorge Hale is born here
  5. 20th century
  6. 1910CensusPopulation peaks at 512
  7. 1929Born hereArtie L. Metcalf is born here
  8. 1972Born hereDawn Rochelle Warner is born here
By decade

Dexter, decade by decade

Today1 recent
Map of Cowley Co, Ks, USA2005Map of Cowley Co, Ks, USAMap
Famous people

3 famous people were born in Dexter

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
A
Artie L. MetcalfAmerican malacologist and ichthyologist · b. 1929
D
Dawn Rochelle WarnerAmerican model and actor · b. 1972
G
George HaleAmerican baseball player · b. 1894

Questions about Dexter’s history

What year was Dexter founded?

The Dexter post office opened in 1870, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (1), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.