Page:History of Southeast Missouri 1912 Volume 1.djvu/450

 390 HISTORY OF SOUTHEAST MISSOURI grist mill and cotton gin, and were dealers in cotton. The great advantage which Dexter possessed at the early period and the cause of its rapid growth was the railroad. It was located on the Cairo branch of the Iron Mountain be- tween Bird's Point and Poplar Bluff. It thus had connection with the river and with the main line of the Iron ilountain to St. Louis. The transportation problem, the greatest which had to be solved for towns and com- munities in this part of the state when they were situated away from the river, was not troublesome in the early history of Dexter. Conseciuently it grew rapidly. It was in a position to seize a large part of the trade from Stoddard and Dunklin counties which had formerly gone to Cape Girardeau and New Madrid. To the south of Dexter was the great sand ridge over which travel was easy. It was separated from Dunklin county by Taylor and Gum sloughs, it is true, but these were easily crossed so that no real obstacle was interposed except distance. This was much less than the citizens of that country had previously travelled to market so that there soon poured into Dexter a constantly in- creasing streaUi of cotton and other produce especially from Dunklin county. Much of the country around the town was suitable for wheat growing and a mill was built which brought wheat from places many miles dis- tant. Much of this wheat had formerly been carried to Cape Girardeau or Bloomfield. Not only was much produce brought to the town. Those who came to sell their products bought large quantities of goods. The greater part of the country to the south was supplied with practically all imported goods from Dex- ter. This trade brought wealth to the town. Its merchants were prosperous and added to their stocks. The first blow to the prosperity of the town came with the building of the Little River Valley & Arkansas Railroad from New Mad- rid to Maiden. The latter town was nearer to the cotton regions and soon absorbed much of the trade which had formerly come to Dexter. Two things, however, contributed to the growth of the town perhaps more than was lost. One of these was the building of St. Louis Southwestern Railway north from Mai- den, first to Delta, later to Gray's Point and eventually to Thebes. This provided railroad competition and direct connection by through trains to St. Louis. The other fact important in the development of the town was the drain- age movement which resulted in the opening of vast quantities of the richest and most pro- ductive lands. These lands were naturally tributary to Dexter and the increased trade which they brought added to the town's wealth. Large wood-working plants were erected and are still in operation. For years there was bitter rivah-y between Dexter and Bloomfield. The latter town was without railroad facilities for years after Dex- ter had acquired them, but it was the county seat, was older and seemed more firmly estab- lished. The people of Dexter made efforts to move the county seat to their town. Failing in this they secured the passage of a law re- quiring two sessions of the circuit court to be held in Dexter and two in Bloomfield each year. To provide a place for the meetings of the court they erected a fine brick building. The arrangement was not found satisfactory and the law was repealed. The building which was thus left vacant was sold to the Christian church for use as a college building. After some efforts to establish a college the church sold it to the public school and it is now in use as a high school building. The schools of Dexter have always been