Barren Ridge

A post office opened at the crossroads settlement of Barren Ridge in 1850, and James Bundy was named the first postmaster. Because there was already a post office in Smith County called Canton and the postal service would not grant a post office by that name in Van Zandt County, citizens of the Van Zandt County seat of Canton were forced to travel eight miles to Barren Ridge for their mail. The post office also served as a stage stop on the Dallas-Shreveport road. Chesley Parker served as the only other postmaster, and when the post office was discontinued in 1857, the settlement soon dissipated. The lone remaining sign of the settlement is the Blair/Bundy Cemetery.