The “first” of anything is always difficult to ascertain. According to an official Texas Historical Marker on Highway 21 on the west side of city of San Augustine, William Ward built one of the first two sawmills in Texas in the year 1819 on Ironosa Creek. Incise of the base of the marker reads “Dedicated to the sawmill industry by the Texas Forestry Association on the 150th anniversary of sawmilling in Texas.”