A Brief History of the Dexter Historical Society:

In the last 40 years, with an almost entirely volunteer work force, the Dexter Historical Society has accomplished a phenomenal amount of work. They have found, collected, preserved, cataloged and displayed literally thousands of artifacts, photos, printed items and original documents pertaining to all facets of Dexter's public and personal history.

Even before the society existed there were Dexter citizens concerned with her history to whom we owe a debt of gratitude for information, particularly lawyer Volney Sprague whose research and interviews with older citizens was the basis of much of the information in Senator Stanley Plummer's history. Again we owe preservation and expansion of this history to Mary Hamilton and Annie Winslow Murphy. They also inventoried Elmwood and Mt. Pleasant cemeteries, raided town records and published many early family histories in years of weekly newspaper columns during the1930's.

The birth pangs of the current society began appropriately enough on July 4, 1962 when Frank Spizuoco was reading some Civil War letters in an old attic. As he told people about them he heard about other items of interest and soon had a personal collection. When seniors at Dexter High were looking for a project the next spring, Spizuoco suggested displaying his collection. Their exhibit at Reed's Clothing Store was a success and continued under the sponsorship of the Jaycees in a couple of different vacant stores that fall and in 1964 and 65. The Eastern Gazette, the local newspaper, gave it considerable attention. This brought in many donations for which Spizuoco devised a cataloging system.

While steps were being taken to form an official society the idea of using the old S. L. Small Grist Mill, which had just closed its doors after over 150 years of operation, to house and display the collection was put forth by Gazette editor Russ Gerould. Town meeting in 1966 approved town takeover of the building and its use was arranged by the society which was formed May 1, 1966 with election of officers, Frank Spizuoco, president, Veth Hope, vice-president, Ruth Dudley, secretary and Dean Thompson, treasurer and adoption of by-laws stating its purpose.