The Southern Industrial and Lumber Review reported that seven sawmills operated along Buffalo Bayou in 1908. The saw mill of the Ed H. Harrell Lumber Company was located on the bank of Buffalo Bayou in the Fifth Ward of Houston. The expanded its daily output to 30,000 board feet in 1907, which supplemented the company's already extensive sash and door factory, located near the mill site. Twenty-five men worked in the mill. Timber was transported along the railroad and dumped into a log pond in front of the mill. The rough lumber was transported directly to the company's factory for further drying, dressing, and remanufacturing.
Sometime about 1910, Harrell sold his sawmill company and opened a retail and wholesale lumber commission business. He died in 1947.