According to the Census of 1870, John F. Carr ran a saw mill in Polk County. This may be the same John F. Carr who had a saw and grist mill on Menard Creek during the 1850s. In 1870, his mill had a capital investment of $4,000 and $50 in logs. In a two-month operation, he employed twelve men whom he paid a total of $100. They manufactured 300,000 feet of pine and oak lumber of a value of $3,450.
According to Webb, Carr settled Ace, Polk County, in 1839, and built a horse-gin and later a steam-powered gin and sawmill. He owned a wharf on the Trinity River and built a number of boats. The town was first called Swiftfield, then later Ace.