| History: | J. J. McConnico appears in Angelina County records as buying in 1899 six acres of the Chas M. Raguet interest on the J. L. Quinalty grant of land. This became the Nunnally-McConico sawmill plant at Baber. The mill was situated in Angelina County on the Texas & New Orleans railroad, about four miles south of Huntington, which had been listed in the Southern Lumber and Industrial Review in 1906 as being at Huntington. J. Press Carter, youngest brother of S.F. Carter, Sr. (both of Emporia Lumber Company) formed the Carter Lumber Company in 1905. Anticipating his older brother's retirement from active milling in 1906, Press Carter began to place himself in a position to operate several mills in the counties of Angelina, Nacogdoches and Tyler. By February ,1906, Press Carter, along with J. S. Rice, had bought two mills in Angelina and Nacogdoches counties and owned the output of two others.
After some modifications (see the Carter entry at Sandy Creek), it was soon rated at 50,000 board feet per day. The mill operated at least until March 1909, but was most likely dismantled sometime before the town's post office was discontinued in August, 1915. In December, 1914, and January, 1915, several employees filed liens as employees upon the stock of merchandise at the Baber commissary and lumber at the mill, as well as the mill buildings, equipment, and tram road. At the time, the mill was in the hands of June C. Harris, receiver, of Nacogdoches.
At the time of the Carter Lumber Company's official incorporation in December 1905, J. Press Carter had served or was currently serving as mill manager for at least three mills. These were the two Emporia mills at Emporia and Doucette and the J.I. Campbell mill at Warren under W.H. Norris's receivership. J.S. Rice, at the time of incorporation, was serving as head of the Kirby Lumber Company during one of its numerous receiverships.
In February, 1906, the Southern Industrial and Lumber Review reported the Carter Lumber Company owning, in addition to the Baber mill, the output of A.J. Caruthers' 40,000 foot mill at Sacul, Nacogdoches County. Also mentioned were a separate “small mill in Nacogdoches County” and the output of the Simpson and Harris mill, “on the High, Dry, and Windy.” An advertisement in the same issue, however, only told of “mills at Baber and Sacul.”
Sandy Creek is about five miles long, running from Zavalla in a southwestwardly direction, joining Shawnee Creek just south of Barge Cemetery. |