Though some real estate developments are labeled to evoke scenic landscape or imagined historical significance, Mercer Crossing was named for a true pioneer and an entrepreneurial spirit that actually existed on the site. And that spirit continues through today. Mercer Crossing is a tribute to Charles Fenton Mercer (1778-1858), a Virginia statesman who came to the newly independent Republic of Texas in 1844 to take advantage of President Sam Houston's efforts to increase settlement. Houston granted Mercer an empresario contract to settle at least 100 families in Mercer Colony, on land that included the current site of Mercer Crossing. It was located east of the Peters Colony, which was settled in the late 1830s. Charles Mercer organized a company, the Texas Association, to advertise and promote colonization, and sold shares at $500 each to investors in Virginia, Florida, and Texas. By the end of the first year, Mercer Colony included over 100 families who each received land certificates. It was a highly sought out settlement due to its mild climate, proximity to the Trinity River, and the beautiful hickory trees. The last buffalo seen east of the Elm Fork of the Trinity River was killed in early 1846 "in a small glade about 2 miles southwest from the now town of Farmers Branch". (This is approximately present day Royal Lane and Luna Road) When modern-day affiliates American Realty Investors, Transcontinental Realty Investors, and Income Opportunity Realty Investors acquired land that once was part of the historic colonies, the name Mercer Crossing seemed a natural fit. Although no longer dominated by hickory groves, the first grouping on Mercer Crossing land were a complex of office buildings appropriately named Hickory.