Desert is on State Highway 160 in far northeast Collin County, within two miles of the intersection of the Grayson and Fannin county lines. The town, settled about 1890, has the same name as the creek that runs just outside it. A post office was established in 1893 but was discontinued in 1904. For most of its history Desert has served area farmers as a retail point, providing a general store, a school, a church, and a gristmill. The population of the community, never more than 100, was twenty-five from 1933 through 2000.