The Desert area was named back before the Republic of Texas, it was a popular camp spot and water hole for ox teams carrying supplies to the new settlements, a company of men were camping there and they had a cook who was a slave with them, one morning they awoke and he was gone, putting them in terrible shape as none could cook. It was called "Desertion Camp" and then finally just "Desert".
This cemetery is often called the Desert Cemetery by oldtimers referring to it as the name of the townsite that grew near it.
The cemetery is also called the Mt. Carmel cemetery, which is probably it's proper name as that was the name of the church which stood there. The Hampton family had given land for a church, school and cemetery; the church was named Mt. Carmel, the school named for the Hampton's. After the church closed and the school went on for a long while, leading more people to call it the Hampton Schoolhouse cemetery and of course those who called it the Desert Cemetery. The more modern and easier to get to Presbyterian "Cross Roads Cemetery" located just south of Desert was the new cemetery for the area.
There are many unmarked graves here. It is in terrible shape.