Dexter is a village in Washtenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The majority of the village is in the northwest corner of Scio Township with a small portion (approximately 200 homes) in Webster Township. The population was 2,338 at the 2000 census. There is no political connection between the Village of Dexter and the nearby Township of Dexter, which is located to the northwest of the municipality. The township was named for Judge Samuel William Dexter, but he named the village for his father Samuel Dexter, the early American statesman). In 1824 Samuel W. Dexter became the first person to purchase land in what is now Dexter village. Dexter is the birthplace of biologist, women's suffragette, and philanthropist Katharine Dexter McCormick and Dr. Royal S. Copeland, US Senator from New York. Dexter is also home to the high school boys cross country team that tied the state record for most consecutive Michigan High School Athletic Association state championship titles with five, winning from the years 2002-2006.