The Caraway sawmill was moved from nearby Sterne to Appleby by 1905 or 1906. The American Lumberman reported on 17 March 1906 that the Caraway mill near Nacogdoches had burned with an uninsured loss $2,500. Furthermore, the situation was suspicious, for the mill had been “sold the afternoon of the fire to J. F. Summers and J. W. Arthur, the new proprietors intending to start up the plant the next day. It is generally believed that the fire was of incendiary origin and the matter is receiving the attention of the officers.” The mill remained in the hands of Caraway, and by September 1906 was reported to be cutting 40,000 feet daily at Appleby. It was not listed in the Reference Book of the Lumbermen's Credit Association, January 1907.
The county deed records reveal that Caroway was buying land on the John Arriola grant, about six miles northeast of Nacogdoches near Appleby, from 1906 to 1908. On October 25, 1907, Adam Carraway sold a steam sawmill plant to W. H. Coats. Adam Carroway, according to county records, sold a sawmill for $500 to W. H. Coates, C. A. Coates, and A. D. Russell. Equipment included the sawmill, a boiler, carriage, saw husk, saws, belts, and piping.