Mission:

To create an environment that stimulates commerce.

History

DeSoto is one of the oldest settlements in North Texas. In 1847, just 11 years after Texas won its independence from Mexico, families first settled in the area that is now DeSoto. Around 1848, T.J. Johnson, fresh from Tennessee, built a tiny general merchandise store near the "crossroads" - located at the intersection of a road stretching north/south from Dallas to Ellis County and another running east/west from Lancaster to Cedar Hill (now Hampton and Belt Line Roads).

In 1881, a post office was established, and the settlement was given the name of DeSoto in honor of Dr. Thomas Hernando DeSoto Stewart, a beloved doctor dedicated to the community. During those early years, people in the community worked on farms and went to church, and not much changed until the 1940s.