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Table of Contents

Abstract

Introduction

Geology

Hydrology

Chemical Quality

Summary

Well Records

Logs of Test Holes

References

Plate

Table 1

System	Series	Stage	Group	Formation or rock unit	Member	Thickness, in feet (1)	Lithology	Water-bearing characteristics (2)
Quaternary	Pleistocene	Recent and Wisconsinan		Alluvium and terrace deposits		0-90	Coarse sand and gravel containing some silt and clay beneath the flood plain and Newman terrace in the Kansas River valley. In smaller valleys, the alluvium contains a large percentage of fine-grained material.	Large quantities of water are available to wells in the Kansas River valley. Moderate to large quantities of water are available locally to wells in the Delaware River valley. Only small quantities of water are available to wells in smaller tributary vall
		Wisconsinan and Illinoisan		Loess		0-20	Wind-blown deposits of silt containing clay and fine sand. Generally mantles the upland area.	Small quantities of water are available locally to wells.
		Wisconsinan, Illinoisan, and Kansan		Terrace deposits		0-50	Sandy gravel and clay locally beneath terraces bordering bluffs in the Kansas and Delaware River valleys.	Small quantities of water are available locally to wells.
		Kansan and Nebraskan		Lacustrine clay		0-70	Silty clay with a few pebbles. Contains a few beds of silty sand in the north-central part of the county.	Yields no water to wells in the area.
				Glacial drift		0-100	Glacial till (unsorted mixture of clay, silt, sand, gravel, and boulders) and associated glaciofluvial material. Remnants of these deposits generally mantle the bedrock surface in the upland areas. Drift generally is thinly mantled by loess, except in the	Moderate quantities of water are available locally to wells in coarse-grained glaciofluvial materials incorporated in till, especially in the northeastern part of the county. Elsewhere, only small quantities of water are available.
Pennsylvanian	Upper Pennsylvanian	Virgilian	Wabaunsee	Willard Shale		20-30	Dark-bluish-gray and brown silty shale and locally fine-grained sandstone.	Small quantities of water are available locally to wells in the upper weathered zone.
				Emporia Limestone	Elmont Limestone	20-30	Limestone members are dense, hard, and bluish gray weathering light bluish gray to light brown. Shale member is bluish gray to brown and sandy to clayey.	Small quantities of water are available locally to wells in the upper part of the limestones, where weathered.
					Harveyville Shale
					Reading Limestone
				Auburn Shale		20-30	Gray to brown sandy shale locally containing silty sandstone.	Small quantities of water are available locally to wells.
				Bern Limestone	Wakarusa Limestone	20-30	Upper limestone is thick bedded and dark bluish gray weathering to light brown. Shale is bluish gray and sandy to clayey. Lower limestone is thick bedded and grayish brown weathering to brown; contains shale partings between beds.	Small quantities of water are available locally to wells in the upper part of the limestones, where weathered.
					Soldier Creek Shale
					Burlingame Limestone
				Scranton Shale	Silver Lake Shale	75-120	Upper shale is bluish gray to yellowish brown and sandy to clayey; contains thin platy limestone beds. Upper limestone is bluish gray weathering to gray or brown. Middle shale is bluish gray to yellowish brown and sandy to clayey; contains the Elmo coal b	Small quantities of water are available locally to wells.
					Rulo Limestone
					Cedar Vale Shale
					Happy Hollow Limestone
					White Cloud Shale
				Howard Limestone	Utopia Limestone	10-20	Upper limestone is thin to medium bedded and brownish gray to gray weathering to bight brown. Shale is clayey and gray to reddish brown. Lower limestone is bluish gray weathering to light gray or yellow brown.	Small quantities of water are available locally to wells.
					Winzeler Shale
					Church Limestone
				Severy Shale		30-70	Brown to gray fissile sandy to clayey shale. Nodaway coal bed and carbonaceous shale in upper part. Locally contains a silty fine-grained sandstone.	Small quantities of water are available locally to wells.
			Shawnee	Topeka Limestone	Coal Creek Limestone	20-30	Limestone members generally are medium to thick bedded and gray to grayish brown weathering to yellowish brown. Upper shale is a platy dark-gray carbonaceous shale. Two middle shales are silty to clayey and calcareous. Lower shale is sandy to clayey and b	Small quantities of water are available locally to wells in the upper part of the limestones, where weathered.
					Holt Shale
					Du Bois Limestone
					Turner Creek Shale
					Sheldon Limestone
					Jones Point Shale
					Curzon Limestone
					Iowa Point Shale
					Hartford Limestone
				Calhoun Shale		20-45	Gray to brown silty to sandy shale, locally containing silty fine-grained sandstone.	Small quantities of water are available locally to wells.
				Deer Creek Limestone	Ervine Creek Limestone	30-40	Upper limestone is thick bedded with wavy partings and gray weathering to yellowish brown. Upper shale unit grades upwards from black fissile shale to light-gray silty and sandy shale. Middle limestone is gray to brown weathering to yellowish brown. Lower	Small quantities of water are available locally to wells in the upper part of the thicker limestones, where weathered.
					Undifferentiated Burroak and Larsh Shale
					Rock Bluff Limestone
					Oskaloosa Shale
					Ozawkie Limestone
				Tecumseh Shale		60-85	Bluish-gray to olive-gray silty to sandy shale locally containing silty fine-grained sandstone beds.	Small quantities of water are available locally to wells.
				Lecompton Limestone	Avoca Limestone	30-45	Upper limestone is dark gray weathering to light yellowish brown and is interbedded with gray silty shale. Upper shale is clayey and olive gray weathering to gray. Second limestone is thin to medium bedded, bluish gray weathering to light tan, and very fo	Small quantities of water are available locally to wells in the upper part of the thicker limestones, where weathered.
					King Hill Shale
					Beil Limestone
					Queen Hill Shale
					Big Springs Limestone
					Doniphan Shale
					Spring Branch Limestone
				Kanwaka Shale	Stull Shale	60-90	Upper shale is dark gray and silty to sandy; locally contains a silty fine-grained sandstone. Limestone is thin, dense, and bluish gray weathering to light grayish brown. Lower shale is silty to sandy and bluish gray; locally contains a silty fine-grained	Small quantities of water are available locally to wells.
					Clay Creek Limestone
					Jackson Park Shale
				Oread Limestone	Kereford Limestone	35-60	Upper limestone is very fossiliferous, even to wavy bedded, and light gray weathering to yellowish brown. Upper shale is silty to clayey and light gray to reddish gray. Second limestone is wavy bedded and gray weathering to light grayish brown; contains c	Small quantities of water are available locally to wells in the upper part of the thicker limestones, where weathered.
					Heumander Shale
					Plattsmouth Limestone
					Heebner Shale
					Leavenworth Limestone
					Snyderville Shale
					Toronto Limestone
			Douglas	Lawrence Formation		60	Reddish-gray and bluish-gray to olive-gray sandy to clayey shale and locally silty fine-grained sandstone.	Small quantities of water are available locally to wells.

(1) Outcrop thickness given for rocks of Pennsylvanian age.

(2) In this report, small supplies refers to yields generally less than 10 gpm, moderate supplies to 10 to 100 gpm, and large supplies to greater than 100 gpm.

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