For the census year ending May 31, 1880, S. H. Stone ran a sawmill on a “branch of the Moral (Creek),” in Nacogdoches County. Stone had $1000 invested in the enterprise, employed five hands (three children under the age of sixteen years), and paid $1 to $2 a day in wages. During the census year, the mill was reported to have been in operation for six months, and the working hours were generally from nine to ten hours per day. The mill was a single circular saw, and Stone did not do his own logging. Utilizing an overshot wheel, his mill was rated at 14-horsepower.