 The city is famous for being the site of a July 23, 1933, shootout between members of the Barrow gang and police from as far away as Des Moines.On September 18, 1948, Dexter was the site of a national plowing match at which President Harry Truman delivered a speech attacking the 80th Congress for its record in regard to the American farmer.This speech is considered one of the most important of his 1948 Whistle Stop campaign that turned the tide of the election and returned him to the White House."