Skip Navigation

Lost Branch Formation

Prev Page--Conclusions, References


Appendix

The location and description of measured outcrop sections and cores used in constructing figs. 8 and 9 are given in this appendix. The sections are listed in order from north (or northwest) to south, that is, from right to left, on each figure in succession. The depth intervals (in parentheses after the unit name) are given only in feet because they are marked only in feet on the cores.

Sections for figure 8

Osceola Core (CP-37)--3 mi (4.8 km) northwest of Osceola, Clarke County, Iowa (NE SE NE sec. 2, T. 72 N., R. 26 W.; reposited at the Iowa Geological Survey, Iowa City, Iowa). Description modified from Swade (1985) and O'Brien (1977) by P. H. Heckel. Thickness
ft m
Hertha Limestone (41.5-53.2 ft)11.73.6
Sniabar Limestone Member (41.5-52.0 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, with fossiliferous shale in lower middle10.53.2
Mound City Shale Member (52.0-53.2 ft)  
Shale, black, phosphatic, with gray fossiliferous shale at top and base1.20.4
Upper Pleasanton unit  
Shale, sandy, with sandstone in middle and at top and coal at 58 ft16.75.1
Exline limestone (69.9-72.3 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, with shale partings increasing upward, and small phosphatic internal molds of fossils2.40.7
Lower Pleasanton unit (72.3-72.6 ft)  
Shale, fossiliferous0.30.1
Lost Branch Formation (72.6-80.9 ft)8.32.5
Cooper Creek Limestone Member (72.6-80.6 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, mottled, becoming nodular toward top and with shale partings toward base; conodont fauna includes common Diplognathodus and highest occurrence of Neognathodus [about 1 ft (0.3 m) below top (Swade, 1985)] 8.02.4
Phosphatic shale unit (80.6-80.7 ft)  
Shale, green, fossiliferous, with laminar and granular phosphorite and abundant conodont fauna [described by Swade (1985)], which is also characteristic of the Nuyaka Creek black shale bed in more southern localities0.10.03
Sni Mills Limestone Member (80.7-80.9 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal0.20.06
Memorial Shale (80.9-91.7 ft)  
Mudstone, red, silty, barren, with irregular carbonate nodules10.83.3
Lenapah Limestone, Norfleet Limestone Member (91.7-94.9 ft)  
Shale, gray calcareous, with scattered fossils, and 0.2-ft (0.06-m) layer of argillaceous skeletal calcilutite at base3.21.0
Nowata Shale (94.9-98.9 ft)  
Mudstone, barren, blocky, green at base and red to mottled red and gray upward, with irregular carbonate nodules in upper part4.01.2
Altamont Limestone (98.9-110.3 ft)11.43.5
Worland Limestone Member (98.9-108.9 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal; grades upward to shaly, barren calcilutite10.03.0
Lake Neosho Shale Member (108.9-109.9 ft)  
Shale, green-gray, phosphatic, fossiliferous, with dark zone in middle and abundant conodont fauna [described by Swade (1985)]1.00.3
Amoret Limestone Member (109.9-110.3 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal0.40.1

Outcrop 1--2 mi (3.2 km) north of Cincinnati, Iowa, near Appanoose County dump (in northwest comer of old quarry, southeast of dump entrance; east of center of SW NW sec. 27, T. 68 N., R. 18 W.; Centerville West Quadrangle). Discovered from old literature by D. E. O'Brien; measured and described by P. H. Heckel, 1984. This exposure is within 6 mi (9.7 km) of the type area of the Cooper Creek Limestone Member and therefore serves as the principal reference section for this member. Thickness
ft m
Exline Limestone  
Calcilutite, skeletal, dense, brownish, now mostly slumped1.00.3
Lower Pleasanton unit  
Mudstone, gray, blocky2.50.8
Lost Branch Formation6.52.0
Cooper Creek Limestone Member4.51.4
Calcilutite, skeletal, gray, medium-bedded, with spar-filled voids and fractures. Biota includes crinoid debris, foraminifers, brachiopods, bryozoans, snails, fragments of phylloid algae, and sparse conodonts, including the highest occurrence of Neognathodus (in sample from middle).  
Shale unit2.00.6
Shale, green-gray, with brachiopods, fusulinids, and crinoid debris0.50.2
Shale, dark-gray, with phosphorite laminae and abundant conodont fauna like that described by Swade (1985) from shale below the Cooper Creek Limestone Member in the Osceola core (CP-37) and that characteristic of Nuyaka Creek black shale bed to the south0.80.2
Shale, gray, with brachiopods, ostracodes, and sparse bryozoans0.50.2
Shale, slightly darker gray, with coaly fragments and scattered brachiopods and bryozoans0.20.06
Memorial Shale10.8+3.2+
Shale, gray, blocky, unfossiliferous0.80.2
Mudstone, red, blocky, unfossiliferous10.0+3.0+

Outcrop 2--Near Elko, Putnam County, Missouri (along road on east line of NE sec. 25, T. 65 N., R. 18 W.; Graysville Quadrangle). This is Stratigraphic Section 37 of Howe (1982), condensed and reclassified for the present purposes. Only his unit 8, the black shale (at center east line of NE NE sec. 25), and unit 1, the top of the Altamont Limestone, were exposed in the spring of 1983. Thickness
ft m
Upper Pleasanton unit  
Shale, with molluskan fauna like that often found in the Exline limestone near middle (units 15-18)164.9
Exline limestone (unit 14)0.30.09
Lower Pleasanton unit11.13.4
Grain Valley coal (unit 13)0.10.03
Clay above shale (units 11 and 12)113.4
Lost Branch Formation154.6
Cooper Creek Limestone Member  
Limestone, rubbly, argillaceous (unit 10)20.6
Shale unit134.0
Shale, gray (unit 9)103.0
Shale, black to dark-gray (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), with abundant characteristic conodonts (unit 8)30.9
Nowata-Memorial Shale103.0
Shale, with clay at top (units 5-7)51.5
Coal (unit 4), possibly landward equivalent of Norfleet Limestone Member1.00.3
Clay and covered interval (units 2 and 3)41.2
Altamont Limestone (unit 1)  

Outcrop 3--Near spillway of lake in Thousand Hills State Park, west of Kirksville, Adair County, Missouri (mainly in spillway and hill on south side, NE NE NW sec. 23, T. 62 N., R. 16 W.; Novinger Quadrangle). This combines Stratigraphic Section 39 of Howe (1982) and Stratigraphic Section 13 of Howe (1953), condensed and reclassified for the present purposes. Only Upper Pleasanton sandstone, black and gray shales of the Lost Branch Formation, and the top of the Altamont Limestone were observed in 1982-1985. Thickness
ft m
Upper Pleasanton unit (strat. sec. 39, unit 6)  
Sandstone resting unconformably on beds as low as the Lost Branch Formation6018
Exline limestone (strat. sec. 39, unit 5)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, with conspicuous phylloid algae, small mollusks, etc.0.70.2
Lower Pleasanton unit12.53.8
Shale, dark-gray, flaky (strat. sec. 39, unit 4)2.50.8
Coal (Grain Valley) (strat. sec. 39, unit 3)0-0.150-0.05
Mudstone to sandstone, brown, reddish at base, leached as underclay at top; thickness varies from 5 ft to 15 ft (1.5-4.6 m) (strat. sec. 39, unit 2)103.0
Lost Branch Formation154.6
Shale, gray to tan, micaceous, silty upward with clay-ironstone concretions in upper part (strat. sec. 13, unit 14)13.54.1
Shale (strat. sec. 13, unit 13), dark-gray to black (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), clayey, with phosphate laminae to nodules and abundant conodont fauna like that described by Swade (1985) from shale below the Cooper Creek Limestone Member in Iowa core CP-37 and that found in the equivalent Nuyaka Creek black shale bed to the south. Collected at spillway by M. A. Nielsen and in gully north of dam by P. H. Heckel in NW SE NE SW sec. 14, T. 62 N., R. 16 W.1.50.5
Memorial Shale257.6
Mudstone, light-gray (strat. sec. 13, unit 12)10.3
Mudstone, reddish, with gray zone at base (strat. sec. 13, units 10 and 11)92.7
Sandstone, micaceous (strat. sec. 13, unit 9)10.3
Shale, tan, micaceous (strat. sec. 13, unit 8)30.9
Underclay, with plant roots and a coal streak at top (strat. sec. 13, units 6 and 7)10.3
Mudstone, gray to reddish (strat. sec. 13, units 4 and 5)103.0
?Lenapah Limestone, Norfleet Limestone Member [compare to sequence in core CP-37 taken at Osceola, Iowa, 90 mi (145 km) to northwest]  
Limestone, light-gray (strat. sec. 13, unit 3)0.10.03
Nowata Shale  
Mudstone, gray (strat. sec. 13, unit 2)41.2
Altamont Limestone, Worland Limestone Member  
Calcilutite, skeletal, gray; forms floor of top of spillway (strat. sec. 13, unit 1)51.5

Outcrop 4--In creek bed south of Laredo, Grundy County, Missouri (east side of creek reached by tributary ravine across north end of hog farm east of road, near center of south half of NW SW SW sec. 24, T. 60 N., R. 23 W.; Chula Quadrangle). This is Stratigraphic Section 11 of Howe (1953), condensed and reclassified for the present purposes. Most units were fairly well exposed in the autumn of 1982. Thickness
ft m
Upper Pleasanton unit  
Sandstone forming banks along upper reaches of creek (unit 7); base is disconformable and contains conglomerate in places3.09.1
Lost Branch Formation41.2
Shale, gray (unit 6)10.3
Shale, black, fissile (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), with abundant characteristic conodonts (unit 5)2.80.9
Zone of limestone concretions (unit 4, not seen)0.20.06
Nowata-Memorial Shale4.51.4
Coal [type Laredo, as designated by Howe (1953, outcrop 11)] (unit 3)0.50.2
Mudstone, light-gray, silty, fairly slumped (unit 2)4.01.2
Altamont Limestone, Worland Limestone Member (unit 1)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, rubbly weathering, mottled, in bed of creek; contains conodonts more characteristic of Worland Limestone Member than of Lenapah Limestone2.0+0.6+
Compared to the Kirksville area, this area must have undergone either little deposition or much erosion as well as leaching during the time between the end of Worland deposition and the Lost Branch marine inundation.

Outcrop 5--Along railroad northwest of Bogard, Carroll County, Missouri (exposed in small rill on south side of railroad cut, west of drainage west of section-line road crossing, in SW SE SE SE sec. 14, T. 54 N., R. 24 W.; Bogard Quadrangle). This is Stratigraphic Section 10 of Howe (1953), condensed and reclassified for the present purposes. The Sni Mills Limestone Member was seen only in the small rill in 1981. Thickness
ft m
Upper Pleasanton unit  
Sandstone, massive, medium-grained; rests unconformably on lower beds (unit 5)5-251.5-7.6
Lost Branch Formation3.41.0
Shale, gray to tan; contains at base small phosphate nodules and conodonts characteristic of the Nuyaka Creek black shale bed3.00.9
Sni Mills Limestone Member  
Calcilutite, skeletal (unit 3)0.40.1
Memorial Shale16+4.9+
Clay, gray to reddish (unit 2)3-40.9-1.2
Shale, gray, micaceous, silty, with clay-ironstone concretions (unit 1)13+4.0+

Outcrop 6--Along railroad northwest of Richmond, Ray County, Missouri (exposed on cutbank on southeast side of railroad near center of east half of NW SW sec. 24, T. 52 N., R. 28 W.; Richmond Quadrangle). This combines Stratigraphic Section 14 of Howe (1982) and Stratigraphic Section 9 of Howe (1953), condensed and reclassified for the present purposes. The Hepler sandstone, Lost Branch Formation, and Memorial Shale were still relatively well exposed in 1981; the Norfleet Limestone Member can be dug out. Thickness
ft m
Upper Pleasanton unit51+15.5+
Sandstone, micaceous, thin-bedded to massive, with crossbeds; detrital coaly zone at base (strat. sec. 14, units 5 and 6)288.5
Shale, gray, with clay-ironstone concretions and scattered molluskan fauna (strat. sec. 14, unit 4)237.0
Exline limestone  
Calcilutite, skeletal, impure, argillaceous (strat. sec. 14, unit 3)10.3
Lower Pleasanton unit12.53.9
Covered (strat. sec. 14, unit 2)0.50.2
Sandstone (Hepler), massive to medium- to thin-bedded, rippled, with mica and carbonaceous material on bedding planes; the upper few feet are calcareous (35-60% acid-soluble), concentrated in irregular nodular to linear patches (rhizolithic?) (strat. sec. 14, unit 1, and strat. sec. 9, unit 15)123.7
Lost Branch Formation10.3
Shale, black (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), with phosphate laminae, abundant characteristic conodonts, and scattered brachiopods (Crurithyris) (strat. sec. 9, unit 14)0.50.15
Sni Mills Limestone Member  
Calcilutite, skeletal, dense, weathering nodular, with brachiopods, bryozoans, crinoids, foraminifers, and snails (strat. sec. 9, unit 13)0.50.15
Memorial Shale237.0
Mudstone, blocky, mottled reddish and olive, with root impressions, scattered calcareous nodules, and thin sandy to shaly zone at top (strat. sec. 9, units 10-12)113.4
Mudstone, olive, with conchoidal fracture, large impure calcareous concretions, and siltstone-filled channellike feature (strat. sec. 9, unit 9)61.8
Shale, gray to greenish, with thin, impure, flaggy calcareous layers (strat. sec. 9, units 7 and 8)61.8
Lenapah Limestone, Norfleet Limestone Member  
Calcarenite, skeletal, with glauconite and crinoid debris (strat. sec. 9, unit 6)0.50.2
Nowata Shale  
Mudstone, gray, chippy to blocky, weathered in the main part to reddish (strat. sec. 9, units 2-5)154.6
Altamont Limestone, top of Worland Limestone Member (strat. sec. 9, unit 1)  

Outcrop 7--In stream east of Sni Mills, Jackson County, Missouri (near west line of SW NW sec. 28, T. 48 N., R. 29 W.; Tarsney Lakes Quadrangle). This is Stratigraphic Section 5 of Howe (1953), the type section of the Sni Mills Limestone Member, condensed and reclassified for the present purposes. This outcrop was not visited because Howe indicated that it was poorly exposed. Therefore the principal reference section of the Sni Mills is designated at a good creek bank exposure 2 mi (3 km) to the south (outcrop 8). Thickness
ft m
Lower Pleasanton unit  
Sandstone (Hepler), even-bedded (unit 13)82.4
Lost Branch Formation113.4
Shale, gray (unit 12, not sampled)103.0
Sni Mills Limestone Member (type section)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, dense, with shale parting in lower third (units 8-11)10.3
Memorial Shale24.5+7.5+
Sandstone, calcareous, with pelecypods and root markings (unit 7)0.50.2
Clay, red and green (unit 6)4.51.4
Shale, sandy, with limestone nodules (unit 5)20.6
Sandstone, friable, massive (unit 4)1.50.5
Shale, gray, with calcareous sandy zones and limestone nodules in upper part (units 1-3)164.9

Outcrop 8--In stream bank south of Sni Mills, Jackson County, Missouri (cutbank in west side of south bend in Sni-A-Bar Creek just west of County Road F, in east half of NE SE sec. 5, T. 47 N., R. 29 W.; Tarsney Lakes Quadrangle). This is Stratigraphic Section 1 of Kinemey (1961), slightly modified and reclassified for the present purposes. All units were well exposed on several visits in the 1980s, but the dark shale usually needs to be dug out. This exposure serves as the principal reference section for the Sni Mills Limestone Member. Thickness
ft m
Lower Pleasanton unit  
Sandstone (Hepler), micaceous, with thin laminae (unit 5)113.4
Lost Branch Formation10.53.2
Shale, gray, micaceous, sandy toward top, with foraminifers near base (unit 4, upper part)9.83.0
Shale, dark-gray, mottled green, with phosphate nodules and abundant conodonts characteristic of the Nuyaka Creek black shale bed (unit 4, base)0.20.06
Sni Mills Limestone Member  
Calcilutite, skeletal, dense, with brachiopods, snails, foraminifers, crinoids, and bryozoans; forms resistant ledge (unit 3)0.50.15
Memorial Shale  
Mudstone, blocky, mottled reddish toward top, with sandy zones and irregular calcareous nodules (units 1 and 2)51.5

Outcrop 9--In Grand River cut north of Archie, Cass County, Missouri (cuts on both sides of dredged channel of South Grand River in west half of NW SW sec. 2 1, T. 43 N., R. 31 W.; Austin Quadrangle). This is Stratigraphic Section 3 of Howe (1953), condensed, reclassified, and partly remeasured on the south side for the present purposes. The lower beds are on the south side, and the higher beds are on the north side; all were well exposed in the autumn of 1981. Thickness
ft m
Lower Pleasanton unit  
Sandstone (Hepler), massive, in channel fill (unit 9)61.8
Lost Branch Formation92.8
Shale, gray, with lenses of cone-in-cone structures (unit 8)61.8
Shale, black, fissile (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed); contains abundant characteristic conodonts, with phosphate nodules, cone-in-cone structures, and black limestone concretions containing ammonoids (units 6 and 7)2.50.8
Sni Mills Limestone Member  
Calcilutite, skeletal, lenticular, with brachiopods; grades laterally into dark-gray fossiliferous shale (unit 5, laterally)0.50.2
Memorial Shale10+3.0+
Mudstone, sandy, with thin-bedded lenticular sandstones; coal horizon with large log impressions at top (units 3 and 4)20.6
Sandstone ledges, hard, calcareous, rippled, interbedded with sandy shale (units 1 and 2)82.4
Howe (1953, p. 20) thought that his unit 5, a thin fossiliferous dark shale, represented the Sni Mills Limestone Member; this has been confirmed by the discovery of a lenticular brachiopod -bearing calcilutite laterally eastward at this horizon.

Outcrop 10--At Walley Mound, northeast of Amsterdam, Bates County, Missouri (in creek bed south of bridge and up road to west, near center of north line of NW sec. 15, T. 41 N., R. 33 W.; Amoret Quadrangle). This is Stratigraphic Section 37 of Gentile (1976), condensed and modified for the present purposes. The black shale of the Lost Branch Formation was well exposed in the west bank of the creek in 1981, but the Exline fossils were not apparent. Thickness
ft m
Pleasanton Group31+9.4+
Shale, mostly covered (unit 14)206.1
Shale, gray, with ironstone concretions containing mollusks characteristic of the Exline limestone in top (units 10-13)72.1
Sandstone (Hepler), thin-bedded, micaceous (unit 9)41.2
Lost Branch Formation164.9
Shale, gray, sandy toward top (unit 8,upper part)144.3
Shale, dark-gray, with brachiopods and ostracodes (unit 8, base)10.3
Shale, black, platy (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), with abundant characteristic conodonts (unit 7)10.3
Memorial Shale11.5+3.5+
Shale, dark-gray, with coaly debris in lower part (units 5 and 6)4.51.4
Shale, gray; grades upward to underclay with root impressions and thin coal horizon at top (units 2-4)51.5
Sandstone, gray (unit 1)20.6

Outcrop 11--In Marais des Cygnes River at Trading Post, Linn County, Kansas (starting in northeast bank of river, just northwest of US-69 bridge, extending southeastward to rapids, all near center of sec. 5, T. 21 S., R. 25 E.; Pleasanton Quadrangle). Measured by P. H. Heckel in 1981. The Lost Branch Formation is well exposed at normal water level. This is the same as Stratigraphic Section 6 of Jewett (1945), who regarded the lower part of the Lost Branch Formation as the Lenapah Limestone and the Lenapah Limestone as upper Altamont Limestone. Thickness
ft m
Lower Pleasanton unit  
Sandstone (Hepler), gray, thin-bedded, shaly103.0
Lost Branch Formation164.9
Shale, gray; becomes sandy upward113.4
Ironstone, reddish, concretionary, in gray shale10.3
Shale, dark-gray; grades upward to gray20.6
Shale, black, fissile (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), with phosphate nodules and laminae and abundant characteristic conodont fauna10.3
Sni Mills Limestone Member  
Calcilutite, skeletal, dark, dense, lenticular, with brachiopods and snails; grades laterally into 0.1 ft (0.03 m) of dark-gray fossiliferous shale with brachiopods, crinoids, and bryozoans10.3
Memorial Shale237.0
Shale to mudstone, gray, with scattered invertebrates at top and plant fossils downward (seen in dry river bed northwest of bridge in October 1983)51.5
Shale, gray, with horizons of ironstone concretions, extending southeast of bridge; contains dark-gray shale zone 2 ft (0.6 m) above base that lacks conodonts154.6
Coal [may be landward equivalent of Idenbro Limestone Member; see Greenberg (1986)]0.30.09
Mudstone, gray, blocky (underclay)3.00.9
Lenapah Limestone, Norfleet Limestone Member [see Greenberg (1986)]  
Calcarenite, skeletal, sandy, medium-bedded, with brachiopods; forms rapids in river bed; exposed and collected in October 19835.51.7

Outcrop 12--On Elk Creek north of Mantey, Linn County, Kansas (in gully entering west side of creek near center of west half of SE SE sec. 6. T. 23 S., R. 24 E.; Mantey Quadrangle). Measured by P. H. Heckel in 1984. This is the same as the Elk Creek Section of Greenberg (1986, p. 185), which was measured at the same place, not in NE sec. 7. Thickness
ft m
Lenapah Limestone6.52.0
Idenbro Limestone Member  
Calcilutite, skeletal, light-gray10.3
Perry Farm Shale Member  
Covered, probably shale51.5
Norfleet Limestone Member  
Calcarenite, skeletal, sandy, with conspicuous crinoid debris0.50.2
Nowata Shale  
Shale, gray, silty, down to creek bed15+4.6

Outcrop 13--On Opossum Creek, west of Mapleton, Bourbon County, Kansas (in east cutbank of creek near center east line of west half of NE SE sec. 29, T. 23 S., R. 23 E.; Mapleton Quadrangle). Measured by P. H. Heckel in 1984. Thickness
ft m
Lost Branch Formation5.5+1.7+
Shale, gray, sparsely fossiliferous; top eroded4.01.2
Shale, black, fissile (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), with phosphate lenses and rare nodules and abundant characteristic conodont fauna10.3
Shale, gray, with brachiopods (chonetids, Crurithyris, productids) and ostracodes0.50.2
Memorial Shale, upper member2+0.6+
Shale, gray, with plant impressions10.3
Mudstone, blocky, with coal smut on top (Dawson coal)1+0.3+
Downstream 0.25 mi (0.4 km) [in NE SE SE sec. 29, probably Stratigraphic Section 32 of Jewett (1945)], badly weathered Lenapah Limestone, probably the Idenbro Limestone Member, crops out above silty shale, probably the Perry Farm Shale Member, but no intervening interval was estimated.

Outcrop 14--East of Uniontown, Bourbon County, Kansas (along north side of paved road on south line of SE SE SW sec. 23, T. 25 S., R. 22 E., then north at small lane along new fence line; Uniontown Quadrangle). Measured by P. H. Heckel in 1984. This is probably the same as Stratigraphic Section 51 of Jewett (1945), which was mislocated "near cen. N line sec. 23, T. 25 S., R. 22 E." Also the same as Sutton (1985), section H-7, and Greenberg (1986), east of Uniontown (UTE) section. Thickness
ft m
Memorial Shale, upper member (top not exposed)9+2.7+
Sandstone, argillaceous, with shale30.9
Shale, gray, sandy51.5
Shale, gray, clayey10.3
Lenapah Limestone185.5
Idenbro Limestone Member  
Calcilutite, skeletal, rubbly, argillaceous, with shale in lower part20.6
Perry Farm Shale Member144.2
Shale, gray20.6
Sandstone, brown-weathering, crossbedded [called Hepler sandstone by Jewett (1945)]61.8
Shale, mostly covered61.8
Norfleet Limestone Member (slumped blocks)  
Calcarenite, skeletal, with crinoid debris20.6
Less than 1 mi (1.6 km) to the northwest, in a creek bed in SE SE NE sec. 22, T. 25 S., R. 22 E., A. P. Bennison found a black, fissile shale that yielded abundant conodonts characteristic of the Nuyaka Creek black shale bed of the Lost Branch Formation. Although apparently stratigraphically higher than the top of the above section, no intervening thickness is estimated.

Outcrop 15--Along K-3 and in ravine west of K-3 road cut, south of Uniontown, Bourbon County, Kansas (steep ravine ~400 ft west of K-3 road cut, SW NE NW sec. 34, T. 25 S., R. 22 E.; Uniontown Quadrangle). Ravine discovered by A. P. Bennison; measured and sampled by P. H. Heckel in 1988 (UT3N-W). Thickness
ft m
Critzer Limestone (exposed below culvert on east side of K-3)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, argillaceous, in two layers10.3
Middle Pleasanton shale unit  
Shale, gray, partly exposed154.5
Exline limestone  
Shale, fossiliferous, with beds of argillaceous skeletal calcilutite; contains snails, crinoid debris, clams, brachiopods, ostracodes, and abundant conodonts10.3
Hepler unit (upper part is partly exposed on east side of K-3)21.5 (est.)6.5 (est.)
Shale, gray15 (est.)4.5 (est.)
[Lower 6.5 ft (2.0 m) is exposed in ravine]  
Sandstone, carbonaceous (forms top of waterfall)0.70.2
Coal ("Hepler")0.30.09
Mudstone to shale, gray, blocky, with fine coaly plant debris5.51.7
Lost Branch Formation11 (est.)3.4 (est.)
Shale, hard, silty, calcareous, with brachiopods, ostracodes, lingulids, and coaly fragments in top and crinoids and bryozoans as well below20.6
Limestone, argillaceous, Shelly, with ostracodes, brachiopods, bryozoans, snails, and coaly fragments0.50.2
Shale, gray, with brachiopods, bryozoans, snails, ostracodes, foraminifers, holothurian plates, and coaly fragments; also contains conodonts, including highest occurrence of Neognathodus1.20.3
Limestone, gray-brown, conglomeratic; consists of rounded calcilutite pebbles in calcilutite to calcarenite matrix, with carbonaceous fragments, brachiopods, bryozoans, clams, and crinoid debris0.30.09
[The above 4 ft (1.2 m) of strata is regarded as the Glenpool limestone bed]  
Shale, gray, silty, with abundant coaly plant debris and scattered ostracodes, brachiopods, foraminifers, snails, clams, and crinoid fragments5.51.7
Top of black fissile shale (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), reported by A. P. Bennison.  
Section continues in cutbank near confluence of small ravine and Marmaton River, just to the west (near center of south line of north half of NW sec. 34, T. 25 S., R. 22 E.). Measured by A. P. Bennison, with samples sent to P. H. Heckel (UT3N-W2).
Shale, black, hard, phosphatic (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), with abundant characteristic conodonts1.50.5
Memorial Shale, upper member  
Mudstone, yellow-gray, blocky; grades downward to shale and very fine grained sandstone41.2

Prong Creek Core (KPC) (Kansas Geological Survey, Troike 1)--0.25 mi (0.40 km) north of K-39, 1.6 mi (2.6 km) west of K-39 bridge over Prong Creek (outcrop 16), Bourbon County, Kansas (SE SE NE SE sec. 5, T. 27 S., R. 22 E.; Porterville Quadrangle). Described by J. A. French; summarized and classified by P. H. Heckel. Thickness
ft m
Hertha Limestone (21.1-86.6 ft)65.519.7
Sniabar Limestone Member (21.1-41.4 ft)  
Limestone, undifferentiated20.36.1
Mound City Shale Member (41.4-86.6 ft)45.213.6
Shale, gray, undifferentiated, with calcareous beds44.613.4
Shale, black, phosphatic0.60.2
Upper Pleasanton shale unit (86.6-101.0 ft)  
Shale, gray, undifferentiated14.44.3
Critzer Limestone (101.0-103.4 ft)  
Calcarenite to calcilutite, skeletal, argillaceous, with two shale beds2.40.7
Middle Pleasanton shale unit (103.4-105.4 ft)  
Shale, dark-gray, silty2.00.6
Exline limestone (105.4-106.1 ft)  
Calcarenite to calcilutite, skeletal, argillaceous, in two thin beds separated by dark-gray shale0.70.2
Hepler unit (106.1-165.0 ft)58.917.7
Shale, gray, silty, with large plant fragments0.70.2
Mudstone, light-gray, blocky2.50.8
Siltstone, gray, argillaceous, with carbonate nodules2.70.8
Sandstone, gray, micaceous, locally rippled, with thin, silty, shaly interbeds and scattered plant fragments16.04.8
Siltstone, argillaceous, with thin beds of micaceous sandstone, especially just above base37.011.1
Lost Branch Formation (165.0-173.2 ft)8.22.5
Shale, gray, silty6.92.1
Shale, black, phosphatic (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), with zone of fossils, including brachiopods, toward base and thin layer of cone-in-cone limestone at base1.30.4
Memorial Shale, upper member (173.2-181.8 ft)8.62.6
Shale, gray, with scattered silty laminae and plant fragments and zone of fossil fragments at base7.42.2
Siltstone, argillaceous, with slickensides1.20.4
Lenapah Limestone (181.8-211.2 ft)29.48.8
Idenbro Limestone Member (181.8-189.2 ft)  
Limestone, peloidal; occurs as irregular, corroded, fractured, and bored nodules in micaceous, silty mudstone matrix; scattered encrusting foraminifers and crinoids7.42.2
Perry Farm Shate Member (189.2-210.7 ft)21.56.5
Siltstone, gray, argillaceous, with very fine sandstone laminae and lenses and tan nodules16.75.0
Shale, gray4.81.4
Norfleet Limestone Member (210.7-211.2 ft)  
Calcarenite, skeletal, argillaceous, with crinoids, brachiopods, and corals0.50.15
Nowata Shale (211.2-214.0 ft)  
Shale, gray, silty, with irregular nodules and fissure (?) fillings2.80.8
Altamont Limestone (214.0-230+ ft)16.0+4.8+
Worland Limestone Member (214.0-227.7 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, with calcarenite bed at top13.74.1
Lake Neosho Shale Member (227.7-229.6 ft)  
Shale, black, phosphatic; grades upward into gray1.90.6
Amoret Limestone Member (229.6+ ft)0.4+0.1+
This core was taken as a stratigraphic test from a surface elevation of 1, 105 ft, under the supervision of J. A. French of the Kansas Geological Survey. It confirms that the sandstone cropping out 1 mi (1.6 km) to the east at the southeast comer of sec. 4, T. 27 S., R. 22 E., at an elevation of 995 ft is underlain by the Lost Branch Formation (identified by the Nuyaka Creek black shale bed from depths of 171.9 to 173.2 ft in the core, which is 1, 105 - 172 = 933 ft elevation in the core; adding 20 ft estimated for regional westward dip yields 953 ft projected elevation, a covered interval in the vicinity of the sandstone outcrop). This sandstone is overlain in the core by the Exline limestone (identified at 106 ft depth, which is 1,105 - 106 = 999 ft in elevation in the core; adding 20 ft for regional dip yields 1,019 ft projected elevation, an interval eroded at and covered west of the sandstone outcrop). Therefore this sandstone is in the position traditionally regarded as the Hepler sandstone by the Kansas and Missouri geological surveys. This core also confirms that the sandstone cropping out 1.6 mi (2.6 km) to the east along Prong Creek at the K-39 bridge (outcrop 16, described next) at 935 ft in elevation is overlain by the Idenbro Limestone Member (which consists of limestone nodules in a mudstone matrix from depths of 181.8 ft to 189.2 ft in the core, or 1, 105 - 185 = 920 ft in elevation; adding 30 ft estimated for regional westward dip yields 950 ft projected elevation, an eroded or covered interval at and west of the Prong Creek K-39 bridge). This confirms that the sandstone at the bridge is in the Perry Farm Shale Member of the Lenapah Limestone, as apparently is also the originally designated type section of the Hepler sandstone nearly 2 mi (3 km) to the southeast, as explained in the description of outcrop 16. This core also shows that the sandstone in the Perry Farm Member at the K-39 bridge grades westward into siltstone, which confirms the findings of Sutton (1985) that only the sandstone above the Lost Branch Formation (traditional Hepler) is widespread in the subsurface.

Outcrop 16--On Prong Creek at K-39 bridge, Bourbon County, Kansas (in creek bed and bank just south of bridge at center of north line of NW NW NE sec. 10, T. 27 N., R. 22 E.; Hepler Quadrangle). Measured by P. H. Heckel in 1985. This is the same section as Sutton's (1985) section H-8 and Greenberg's (1986) section PRC. Thickness
ft m
Lenapah Limestone18+5.5+
Idenbro Limestone Member  
Limestone, argillaceous, in small cobbles; similar to Idenbro strata east of Uniontown (outcrop 14); occurs as float above sandstone just southeast of bluff south of K-39  
Perry Farm Shale Member175.2
Sandstone, thin-bedded, fine-grained (probably the same unit as the original type Hepler sandstone; see discussion below)61.8
Shale, gray; becomes increasingly sandy upward82.4
Two layers of lenticular, skeletal calcarenite separated by gray shale; contain bryozoans, brachiopods, crinoid debris, and ostracodes0.50.2
Shale, gray, micaceous, sandy2.50.8
Norfleet Limestone Member  
Calcarenite, skeletal, with crinoids; forms bed of creek; at least 3 ft (0.9 m) thick in a ditch just north of K-39, 3.3 mi (5.3 km) east of this outcrop (Greenberg, 1986, p. 179)1+0.3+
About 3 mi (4.8 km) northward in a creek bed near the east line of SE NE sec. 28, T. 26 S., R. 22 E., A. P. Bennison found a black fissile shale that yielded abundant conodonts characteristic of the Nuyaka Creek black shale bed of the Lost Branch Formation. Although stratigraphically higher than the top of the Prong Creek section, no intervening thickness is estimated.
Less than 2 mi (3.2 km) to the southeast, Jewett (1940, p. 9) designated the type exposure of the Hepler sandstone in the center of sec. 14, T. 27 S., R. 22 E., about 16 ft (4.9 m) above the Lenapah Limestone. The sandstone at Prong Creek appears to be stratally continuous with the originally designated Hepler type section [see also Bennison (1985) fig. 71, requiring a westerly dip of 15 ft/mi (2.8 m/km), which is reasonable in this area considering that regional dip in southeastern Kansas is about 30 ft/mi (5.7 m/km) and that the main ledge of the Lenapah Limestone displays an average westward dip of only 5 ft/mi (0.9 m/km) between Prong Creek and the exposure 3.3 mi (5.3 km) to the east along K-39. The Hepler type section is now poorly exposed in the road ditches along K-3, but the discovery of Idenbro float above the same sandstone horizon at Prong Creek (outcrop 16) 2 mi (3.2 km) away and the occurrence of the Idenbro Limestone Member in place above a similar sequence of sandstone [called Hepler by Jewett (1945)] above the main ledge of the Lenapah Limestone east of Uniontown (outcrop 14), 10 mi (16 km) to the north, indicate that the type Hepler sandstone is really a sandstone facies of the Perry Farm Shale Member of the Lenapah Limestone. The main ledge of the Lenapah Limestone in this area is now determined to be the Norfleet Limestone Member (Greenberg, 1986) rather than the Idenbro Limestone Member, as believed by Jewett (1945, Strat. Secs. 51 and 92). Sandstone that occurs in the probable stratigraphit position of what has traditionally been considered Hepler sandstone in Linn County, Kansas (e.g., at Trading Post, outcrop 11), and in western and north-central Missouri (Howe, 1982) and in the subsurface [Hepler-C of Sutton (1985)] is found along K-39, 0.6 mi (1 km) west of the Prong Creek exposure (outcrop 16), and roughly 50 ft (15 m) higher in elevation, at the southeast comer of sec. 4, T. 27 S., R. 22 E. This sandstone is stratigraphic ally higher also than the Lost Branch black shale locality in sec. 28, T. 26 S., R. 22 E., mentioned earlier, which means that the interval of the Lost Branch Formation is covered by colluvium along K-39 between the two prominent sandstone outcrops at Prong Creek and 0.6 mi (I km) westward. These conclusions have been confirmed by the Prong Creek core (KPC) described previously. Sutton (1985) referred to the sandstone in the Perry Farm Shale Member at Uniontown (outcrop 14) as Hepler-A and the sandstone at Prong Creek (outcrop 16) as Hepler-B, because at that time I thought that the thin limestones 2.5-3 ft (0.8-0.9 m) above the Norfleet Member might be the Idenbro Limestone Member. But with the more recent discovery of typical Idenbro float above the sandstone at Prong Creek, Sutton's (1985) Hepler-A at Uniontown and Hepler-B at Prong Creek appear to represent the same sandstone unit, the one that is in the Perry Farm Shale Member.

Outcrop 17--On western tributary to Bachelor Creek, 3.5 mi (5.6 km) north of South Mound, Neosho County, Kansas (along creek eastward from NE SW SE SW sec. 28, T. 29 S., R. 20 E.; South Mound Quadrangle). This is Stratigraphic Section 126 of Jewett (1945), in which A. P. Bennison discovered exposures of black shale of the Lost Branch Formation in 1982. Measured by P. H. Heckel in 1984. Thickness
ft m
Lost Branch Formation1.3+0.4+
Shale, black, fissile (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), with phosphate nodules and abundant characteristic conodonts10.3
Shale, black, massive, with sparse small brachiopods (part of Nuyaka Creek black shale bed)0.10.03
Shale, gray, massive, with irregular limestone nodules, coaly fragments, and scattered shells0.20.06
Memorial Shale, upper member  
Mudstone, gray, blocky2.50.8
Lenapah Limestone13+4+
Idenbro Limestone Member  
Calcarenite, skeletal, light-gray; grades downward to calcilutite30.9
Perry Farm Shale Member  
Shale, gray, with limestone nodules in upper part and limestone flags in lower part10+3.0+
Nearly 0.4 mi (0.6 km) to the southwest, along the south bank of the same tributary, in the center of the west half of NW NW sec. 33, T. 29 S., R. 20 E., A. P. Bennison found a black shale that yielded coaly fragments but no conodonts; this shale is probably at the horizon of the "Hepler" coal, as it lies approximately 3 ft (0.9 m) below sandstone to the west that probably is traditional Hepler sandstone. This partial sequence is similar to that seen in the Hepler unit at the Lost Branch stratotype (outcrop 19) and is arbitrarily estimated to start 16 ft (4.9 m) above the exposed Lost Branch black shale [cf. Jewett (1945), interval of 18 ft (5.5 m) from poorly exposed Hepler sandstone to top of Idenbro Limestone Member].

Outcrop 19--In road cut 1 mi (1.6 km) east of South Mound, Neosho County, Kansas (along south side of road on north line of NE NE NE NW sec. 15, T. 30 S., R. 20 E.; South Mound Quadrangle). Measured by P. H. Heckel in 1983 and proposed as the principal reference section for the South Mound shale near the village of South Mound. Thickness
ft m
South Mound shale13.54.1
Sandstone, gray-brown; forms resistant ledge10.3
Shale, gray-brown, with sandstone lenses at top; becomes sparsely fossiliferous downward (brachiopods, crinoid debris, foraminifers)123.7
Lenses of skeletal calcilutite, argillaceous, sandy, with brachiopods and crinoid debris0.20.06
Shale, fossiliferous, with abundant crinoid debris and bryozoans, brachiopods, and snails0.30.09
Hepler unit  
Top of sandstone in road ditch (Hepler)  
This outcrop section is essentially the same as the lower part of locality 9 of Emery (1962) measured just north of the road in section 10. Emery apparently misidentified the 0.2-ft (0.06-m) zone of limestone lenses as Checkerboard Limestone and included the overlying shale and sandstone in the Tacket Formation, even though the type Tacket Formation 20 mi (32 km) to the southwest is mainly black and gray shale with thin nodular limestone but no sandstone reported. Therefore Emery identified as South Mound shale only the 0.3 ft (0.09 m) of shale below the sandy limestone and above the Hepler sandstone. Current work suggests that the horizon identified as Checkerboard Limestone at Mound Valley (outcrop 19) lies above the ledge-fortning sandstone at South Mound (outcrop 18) in the base of the gray and black shale sequence reasonably correlated with the type Tacket Formation and exposed in the ditch less than 1 mi (1.6 km) to the northwest along center of west line of sec. 10, T. 30 S., R. 20 E. (the upper part of Emery's locality 9) but not developed as limestone at that place. Dense, skeletal, oolitic limestone does occur at this horizon below Tacket dark shale and above the sandstone ledge less than 1 mi (1.6 km) to the southwest in the spillway to the large pond just east of South Mound in center of west half of SE NE sec. 16, T. 30 S., R. 20 E. Because this limestone appears to be the same horizon as that identified as Checkerboard Limestone at and near the original South Mound stratotype near Mound Valley (outcrop 19), the entire sequence from the top of the ledge-forming sandstone down to the top of the Hepler sandstone east of South Mound (outcrop 18) belongs to the South Mound shale and is an excellent and more accessible reference section than is the original stratotype.

Outcrop 19--On Lost Branch and nearby, 1 mi (1.6 km) southwest of Mound Valley, Labette County, Kansas (stratotype of Lost Branch Formation) [composite from west highbank of Pumpkin Creek along the east line of SW SW NE sec. 10, T. 33 S., R. 18 E. (Checkerboard Limestone, Soutfi Mound shale) through gully in NW SW NE NE sec. 10 (lower South Mound shale, Hepler unit, top of Lost Branch Formation) to northwest cutbank of Lost Branchjust east of gully near the center of NE NE NE sec. 10 (Lost Branch stratotype and upper Memorial Shale); Mound Valley Quadrangle]. This is the section illustrated by Moore (1937, p. 34) but mislocated in NE NW sec. 10 and lost to the geologic literature until rediscovered by A. P. Bennison in 1981. Measured by P. H. Heckel in 1983 and illustrated in fig. 6. Thickness
ft m
Tacket Formation  
Several feet of black shale in pit northwest of highbank  
Checkerboard Limestone  
Calcarenite, skeletal, dense; thickens to 1.3 ft (0.4 m) in ravine to southwest10.3
South Mound shale (in highbank). This exposure is 1 mi (1.6 km) west-southwest of the South Mound type section designated by Jewett et al. (1965) in sec. 2, T. 33 S., R. 18 E. (see fig. 5a)28.28.6
Shale, gray, with scattered crinoid debris, brachiopods, bryozoans, snails, and clams in lower part288.5
Calcilutite, skeletal, argillaceous (at foot of highbank); this bed occurs as shell-rich lenses in fossiliferous shale in gully to northeast with fauna similar to that above0.20.06
Hepler unit (in gully)41.2
Sandstone (traditional Hepler sandstone), gray, argillaceous0.60.2
Shale, dark-gray to black, carbonaceous, with megaspores but no conodonts1.00.3
Coal ("Hepler"), with zone of silicified log casts at top0.40.1
Shale to mudstone, blocky, gray (underclay)2.00.6
Lost Branch Formation (in cutbank; stratotype)14.64.5
Sandstone, fossiliferous, calcareous, to sandy skeletal calcarenite (Glenpool limestone bed) with brachiopods, crinoid debris, and foraminifers1.00.3
Shale, gray, with sandy zones in upper part and abundant diverse invertebrate fauna throughout [crinoid debris, brachiopods (including Mesolobus), bryozoans, snails, clams, ostracodes, foraminifers]123.7
Shale, black, fissile (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), with phosphate laminae and abundant characteristic conodont fauna1.30.4
Shale, soft, dark-gray, with scattered invertebrates (snails), mica, coaly fragments, and megaspores0.30.09
Memorial Shale, upper member (at base of cutbank)2.00.6
Coal (Dawson)0.30.09
Mudstone, gray, blocky (underclay)1.70.5
Lenapah Limestone, Idenbro Limestone Member  
Irregular top of sandy skeletal calcarenite; forms bed of Lost Branch  

Outcrop 20--Near KGGF radio towers, 3 mi (4.8 km) north-northwest of Angola, Labette County, Kansas (along small drainage from center of west half of SE SE sec. 19, T. 33 S., R. 18 E., eastward to west cutbank of Pumpkin Creek and southward toward southwest comer of sec. 20; Mound Valley Quadrangle). Discovered by A. P. Bennison; measured by P. H. Heckel in 1984. Thickness
ft m
South Mound Shale (lower part)  
Calcarenite, skeletal, argillaceous0.10.03
Shale, gray, mostly covered0.5 (est.)0.2 (est.)
Hepler unit7.02.0
Sandstone ("Hepler"), gray, shaly, carbonaceous, micaceous, with mollusk shells in top, upstream10.3
Shale, gray10.3
Shale, dark-gray, with coalified plant fragments and megaspores but no conodonts10.3
Coal ("Hepler"), locally up to 1 ft (0.3 m) thick0.50.2
Mudstone, gray, blocky (underclay), to shale3.51.1
Lost Branch Formation9.5+2.9+
Calcarenite, skeletal, sandy (Glenpool limestone bed), with crinoid debris, brachiopods, bryozoans, and snails0.50.2
Shale, gray, with scattered crinoid debris, snails, bryozoans, and limestone nodules containing brachiopods; exposed eastward down drainage toward Pumpkin Creek92.7
A. P. Bennison reported black shale (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed) overlying Dawson coal and its underclay above the Idenbro Limestone Member exposed at low water in Pumpkin Creek. Also, the Hepler sandstone thickens 0.2 mi (0.3 km) southeastward to 10 ft (3 m) in a pit at the southeast comer of sec. 19, where it overlies the dark, coaly shale and "Hepler" coal just as it does in the measured section along the drainage.

Outcrop 21--At Perry Farm Shale Member type section, 1.5 mi (2.4 km) west of Angola, Labette County, Kansas (in bank south of road at driveway east of bridge over Pumpkin Creek, center north line of NW NE sec. 7, T. 34 S., R. 18 E.; Valeda Quadrangle). This is Greenberg's (1986) section TPR with intervals remeasured by P. H. Heckel. Thickness
ft m
Lenapah Limestone20.5+6.2+
Idenbro Limestone Member  
Calcilutite, skeletal, gray, somewhat slumped Perry Farm Shale Member [type section, as designated by Jewett (1941, p. 339)]30.9
Shale, gray, with limestone nodules, brachiopods, crinoid debris, snails, and clams123.7
Norfleet Limestone Member2.5+0.8+
Calcarenite, skeletal, dark-gray, dense, with crinoid debris, brachiopods, snails, clams, ammonoids, and abundant conodonts0.50.2
Shale, dark-gray, with clams, snails, and small ammonoids2.50.8
Jewett (1941, p. 340) indicated that another 2 ft (0.6 m) of shale underlain by another thin [0.5 ft (0.2 m)], dark, dense limestone forms the lower half of the Norfleet Member here. At its type section near center of east half of SW SE sec. 35, T. 32 S., R. 18 E.,just east of Mound Valley, 8 mi (13 km) northeast of here (see fig. 5a), the Norfleet Limestone Member consists of 3 ft (0.9 m) of skeletal calcilutite above 0.5 ft (0.2 m) of gray shale overlying a 0.5-ft (0.2- in) ledge of skeletal calcarenite that carries the conodont fauna characteristic of the base of the Norfleet Member elsewhere and of the upper thin limestone of the Norfleet Member exposed here at the Perry Farm type section; therefore the upper part of the Norfleet type section appears equivalent to the lower part of the Perry Farm type section (Greenberg, 1986), as shown in figs. 4 and 8.

South Coffeyville Core (OSC) (Oklahoma Geological Survey C-CN-3)--4 mi (6.4 km) west-southwest of South Coffeyville, Nowata County, Oklahoma (SW SW SW NW SW sec. 28, T. 29 N., R. 15 E.; Elliott Quadrangle). Described by L. A. Hemish, summarized and classified by P. H. Heckel. Thickness
ft m
Checkerboard Limestone (230.1-234.0 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, shaly3.91.2
South Mound shale (234.0-253.1 ft)19.15.8
Shale, gray, with scattered fossils, especially brachiopods17.45.3
Calcilutite, skeletal, shaly, with conodont fauna similar to that found in base of South Mound shale in Kansas1.70.5
Hepler unit (253.1-253.3 ft)  
Siltstone, gray, calcareous, with clasts of underlying unit above sharp irregular contact0.20.06
Lost Branch Formation (253.3-255.9 ft)2.60.8
Mudstone, gray, blocky, with conodonts as below1.50.5
Shale, dark green-gray, phosphatic, with black streaks and abundant conodont fauna characteristic of Nuyaka Creek black shale bed1.10.3
Memorial Shale, upper member (255.9-258.0 ft)  
Mudstone, gray, blocky (underclay of Dawson coal)2.10.6
Lenapah Limestone (258.0-267.4 ft)9.4+2.9
Idenbro Limestone Member (258.0-263.0 ft)  
Calcarenite, skeletal, to calcilutite5.01.5
Perry Farm Shale Member (263.0-264.3 ft)  
Shale, greenish, fossiliferous1.30.4
Norfleet Limestone Member (264.3-267.4 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal (to base of core)3.1+0.9

Lenapah Core (OLC) (Oklahoma Geological Survey C-CN-2)--4 mi (6.4 km) west-southwest of Lenapah, Nowata County, Oklahoma (SW NE NW SE SE sec. 9, T. 27 N., R. 15 E.; Delaware Quadrangle). Described by L. A. Hemish; summarized and classified by P. H. Heckel. Thickness
ft m
Checkerboard Limestone (77.9-85.0 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, shaly, interbedded with fossiliferous shale7.12.2
Seminole Formation (85.0-121.0 ft)36.011.0
Sandstone, gray; grades downward to sandy shale29.89.1
Coal ("Tulsa" = "Hepler")0.10.03
Underclay1.00.3
Sandstone, gray, shaly, with some fossils5.11.6
Lost Branch Formation (121.0-123.5 ft)2.50.8
Calcilutite, skeletal, shaly (Glenpool limestone bed), with phosphate nodules in base and conodont fauna that includes highest Neognathodus in this core0.80.2
Shale, black, fissile, phosphatic (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed)1.20.4
Shale, gray, fossiliferous0.50.2
Memorial Shale, upper member (123.5-124.5 ft)1.00.3
Mudstone, gray, blocky (underclay of Dawson coal)1.00.3
Lenapah Limestone (124.5-137.0 ft)12.5+3.8+
Idenbro Limestone Member (124.5-131.4 ft)  
Calcarenite, skeletal, to calcilutite6.92.1
Perry Farm Shale Member (131.4-132.3 ft)  
Shale, greenish, fossiliferous0.90.3
Norfleet Limestone Member (132.3-137.0 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal (to base of core); Parkinson (1982, p. 82) measured at least 12 ft (3.7 m) of this unit (then regarded as a carbonate facies of the Perry Farm Shale Member) in the type area of the Lenapah Limestone 5 mi (8 km) northeast of this core (see fig. 8)4.7+1.4+
Oakes (1940, p. 204, section 115) erroneously regarded the Glenpool limestone bed as the top of the Lenapah Limestone in a section near old US-169 north of Lenapah and 6 mi (9.7 km) northeast of this core and thereby included the phosphatic shale of the Lost Branch Formation and the entire thin upper Memorial Shale in the upper Lenapah Limestone. Later, Oakes and Jewett (1943) used the absence of these beds elsewhere (where the Memorial Shale and the Lost Branch Formation are*thicker and/or the Glenpool limestone bed is not observed) to support their contention that the Desmoinesian-Missourian unconformity cuts into the top of the Lenapah Limestone in this part of Oklahoma.

Outcrop 22--In Wolf Creek, 3 mi (4.8 km) west of Delaware, Nowata County, Oklahoma (along southwest bank of creek in NE NE SE NW sec. 34, T. 27 N., R. 15 E.; Delaware Quadrangle). Section discovered by A. P. Bennison; measured by P. H. Heckel in 1984. Thickness
ft m
Seminole Formation16+4.9+
Shale, gray, interbedded with thin-bedded, fine-grained sandstone5.0+1.5+
Shale, dark-gray to black, fissile, with coaly fragments, but no conodonts41.2
Coal ("Tulsa" = "Hepler")20.6
Underclay20.6
Covered, probably mudstone30.9
Lost Branch Formation3.71.1
Calcilutite, skeletal, argillaceous (Glenpool limestone bed), with brachiopods, crinoids, and bryozoans0.20.06
Shale, gray, with abundant crinoid debris, brachiopods, bryozoans, clams, and snails1.00.3
Phosphorite nodule bed0.20.06
Shale, black, fissile (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed)1.80.5
Shale, gray0.50.2
Memorial Shale, upper member2.20.7
Coal (Dawson)0.20.06
Mudstone, gray, blocky (underclay)2.00.6
Lenapah Limestone, Idenbro Limestone Member  
Limestone, gray, fossiliferous, with hummocky surface2+0.6
Four-tenths of a mile (0.7 km) upstream (northwestward) in SW-SW-SE-SW sec. 27 and above an undetermined thickness of scattered exposures of northward-dipping gray shale with thin sandstone beds (upper part of Seminole Formation) are two beds of dense, skeletal calcilutite [0.5-1.0 ft (0.2-0.3 m) thick] separated by 5 ft (1.5 m) of gray shale. The possibility that both limestones correlate southward with the type Checkerboard Limestone and that the lower limestone correlates northward with the limestone in the base of the South Mound shale whereas the upper limestone correlates northward with what has been called Checkerboard Limestone at Mound Valley, Kansas, is the basis for the questioned correlations between the Checkerboard Limestone and the South Mound shale in figs. 4 and 8.

Outcrop 23--In Monnon Creek, northwest of Nowata, Nowata County, Oklahoma (in northwest bluff of creek in NW NW NW NE sec. 15, T. 26 N., R. 15 E.; Nowata West Quadrangle). Discovered by A. P. Bennison, this outcrop is the Mormon Creek Section of Parkinson (1982, p. 74). Thickness
ft m
Seminole Formation15+4.6+
Sandstone, tan3+0.9
Shale, gray61.8
Covered61.8
Lost Branch Formation72.1
Calcilutite, skeletal (Glenpool limestone bed), with phylloid algae1.50.5
Shale, gray1.50.5
Shale, black, fissile (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed)1.00.3
Shale, gray3.00.9
Memorial Shale, upper member3.51.1
Coal (Dawson)1.00.3
Mudstone, gray, blocky (underclay)1.50.5
Covered1.00.3
Lenapah Limestone, Idenbro Limestone Member  
Calcarenite, skeletal, in creek bed2.00.6

Nowata Core (ONC) (Oklahoma Geological Survey C-CN-1)--4 mi (6.4 km) west of Nowata, Nowata County, Oklahoma (NE SE SE NE NE sec. 32, T. 26 N., R. 15 E.; Nowata West Quadrangle). Described by L. A. Hemish; summarized and classified by P. H. Heckel. Thickness
ft m
Checkerboard Limestone (base at 100.7 ft)  
Seminole Formation (100.7-159.4 ft)58.717.9
Sandstone, gray; grades downward to dark shale30.89.4
Mudstone, gray, blocky, sandy; possibly a paleosol at "Tulsa" coal horizon (top at 131.5 ft)4.51.4
Sandstone, gray, with shale near middle and top23.47.1
Lost Branch Formation (159.4-165.8 ft)6.42.0
Calcilutite, skeletal, shaly (Glenpool limestone bed)0.90.3
Shale, gray, fossiliferous, with thin sandy layer near base3.61.1
Shale, black, fissile, phosphatic (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed)1.10.3
Shale, dark-gray, with pyritized shell zone in base0.80.2
Memorial Shale (165.8-230.0 ft)64.2+19.6+
Coal (Dawson)0.30.09
Mudstone, gray, blocky (underclay)3.41.0
Sandstone, gray, with marine fossils; probably equivalent to the Idenbro Limestone Member, which is purer limestone in the creek bed north of Talala (outcrop 24), 8 mi (12.9 km) to the south8.32.5
Sandstone, gray (to base of core); possibly channel fill52.2+15.9+

Outcrop 24--In creek 3.5 mi (5.6 km) north of Talala, Rogers County, Oklahoma (starts in east side of creek with the Lost Branch Formation and Dawson coal just north of bridge, at south line of SE SW SE SE sec. 4, T. 24 N., R. 15 E.; extends downstream, southward, to the Idenbro Limestone Member in northeast bend of creek, SW NE NE NE sec. 9, and to the Eleventh Street limestone in southeast cutbank of creek, near the center of NE SE NE sec. 9, T. 24 N., R. 15 E.; Talala Quadrangle). This is the Talala North Section of Parkinson (1982, p. 71); discovered by A. P. Bennison, with intervals estimated by P. H. Heckel. Thickness
ft m
Lost Branch Formation (exposed part)1+0.3+
Shale, black, fissile, with phosphate nodules (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed)10.3
Memorial Shale, upper member82.4
Coal (Dawson)0.50.2
Mudstone, gray, rooted at top (underclay)1.50.5
Covered6 (est.)1.8 (est.)
Lenapah Limestone10 (est.)3.0 (est.)
Idenbro Limestone Member  
Calcilutite, skeletal, with myalinids10.3
Perry Farm Shale Member  
Shale, gray-tan, with limestone nodules6 (est.)1.8 (est.)
Eleventh Street limestone (=Norfleet Limestone Member)  
Calcarenite, skeletal, with conspicuous crinoids30.9
Nowata Shale  
Shale, gray2+0.6+
Just 4 mi (6.4 km) southward, strip mines have been worked in the Dawson coal.

Ramona Core (ORC) (Oklahoma Geological Survey C-TW-2)--5 mi (8 km) east- southeast of Ramona, Washington County, Oklahoma (SE SE SE SW SE sec. 32, T. 24 N., R. 14 E.; Bartlesville Southeast Quadrangle). Described by L. A. Hemish; summarized and classified by P. H. Heckel. Thickness
ft m
Checkerboard Limestone (base at 76.0 ft)  
Seminole Formation (76.0-220.0 ft)144.043.9
Sandstone, gray6.01.8
Shale, gray, interbedded with thin-bedded sandstone42.613.0
Coal ("Tulsa") (124.6-124.7 ft)0.10.03
Siltstone, dark, massive1.00.3
Sandstone, gray; grades downward to sandy shale94.328.7
Lost Branch Formation (220.0-228.0 ft)8.02.4
Shale, gray, fossiliferous, with highest occurrence of Neognathodus in this core in basal 0.6 ft (0.2 m)5.31.6
Shale, black, fissile (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed)2.20.7
Limestone nodules0.20.06
Shale, dark-gray, with brachiopods in top0.30.09
Memorial Shale (228.0-260.0 ft)32.0+9.8
Upper member25.87.9
Coal (Dawson)0.90.3
Sandstone (Jenks), gray, clayey at top22.26.8
Limestone, conglomeratic0.80.2
Shale, gray, calcareous1.90.6
Idenbro Limestone Member (253.8-257.3 ft)3.51.1
Limestone, skeletal, shaly, with conspicuous bivalves3.51.1
Lower member (257.3-260.0 ft)  
Shale, gray, fossiliferous (to base of core)2.7+0.8+

Vera Core (OVC) (Oklahoma Geological Survey C-TW-1)--4.5 mi (7.2 km) west-southwest of Vera, Tulsa County, Oklahoma (SE SW NE NE SE sec. 6, T. 22 N., R. 13 E.; Vera Quadrangle). Described by L. A. Hemish; summarized and classified by P. H. Heckel. Thickness
ft m
Checkerboard Limestone (base at 300.3 ft)  
Seminole Formation (300.3-450.0 ft)149.745.6
Sandstone, gray, and shale, sandy, with coal stringers at 314.5-314.9 ft31.49.6
Coal ("Tulsa") (331.7-331.9 ft)0.20.06
Sandstone, gray, with zones of sandy shale near top and at base118.136.0
Lost Branch Formation (450.0-465.2 ft)15.24.6
Shale, gray, fossiliferous5.81.8
Limestone, with cone-in-cone structure0.30.09
Shale, dark-gray, with fossils in base7.22.2
Shale, black, fissile, phosphatic (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), with pyritized fossils in base1.90.6
Memorial Shale (465.2-470.0 ft)4.8+1.5+
Coal (Dawson)1.80.5
Mudstone, gray, blocky (underclay)2.00.6
Sandstone (Jenks), gray (to base of core)1.0+0.3+

Outcrop 25--In strip mine south of Collinsville, Tulsa County, Oklahoma (NE SW sec. 3 1, T. 22 N., R. 14 E.; Collinsville Quadrangle). Estimated by P. H. Heckel in a pit active in October 1980. Thickness
ft m
Lost Branch Formation4.5+1.4+
Shale, black, fissile (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), with pyritiferous limestone nodules and characteristic conodont fauna41.2
Shale, dark-gray, with limonitized clams, snails, and brachiopods0.50.2
Memorial Shale  
Coal (Dawson)30.9
The conodont fauna in the black shale is essentially the same as that reported by Jones (1935, 1941) from at least three other localities in the same township (sec. 32; NW sec. 20; SE sec. 20). Some of the limestone nodules, particularly in the south half of sec. 32, carry ammonoids (Miller and Owen, 1937). None of the older localities are known to be exposed today. All previous authors reported a sequence above the black shale consisting of 1 ft (0.3 m) of fossiliferous, calcareous sandstone to impure limestone overlain by perhaps 20 ft (6.1 m) of gray shale that is fossiliferous in the middli, and becomes sandier upward. It is not determined how much of this sequence belongs to the Lost Branch Formation or to overlying units.

Outcrop 26--Along Eleventh Street east of Sheridan Road and in adjacent gullies; on east side of Tulsa and nearby localities, Tulsa County, Oklahoma (south line of SW sec. 2 and gullies to north in sec. 2, T. 19 N., R. 13 E.; Tulsa Quadrangle). Most of this section is the original type section of the Memorial Shale designated by Dott (1941), which is measured section 71 of Oakes (1952), summarized and reclassified by P. H. Heckel; sections of higher beds now included in the upper Memorial Shale have been added from nearby areas [from Oakes (1952)] in view of the apparent lack of a complete exposed section of the revised Memorial Shale in the Tulsa region. Thickness
ft m
Memorial Shale82.7-101.725.2-31.0
Upper member22.5-41.56.9-12.6
Dawson coal [strip-mined in sec. 22, T. 20 N., R. 13 E. (Oakes, 1952, meas. sec. 110), 4 mi (6.4 km) north of the type Memorial Shale, near Dawson, Oklahoma, which is the type area of the Dawson coal]1.50.5
Underclay and shale (Oakes, 1952, meas. secs. 110, 111, and 72)51.5
Sandstone (Jenks); reported by Oakes (1952, meas. secs. I I I and 112) within 1 mi (1.6 km) of the strip pit; this sandstone is 25 ft (7.6 m) thick, 5 mi (8 km) south of the strip pit at Oakes's measured section 72, along the west line of sec. 11, within 1 mi (1.6 km) of the type Memorial Shale; the base of this sandstone forms the top of the original type Memorial Shale of Dott (1941, pp. 1,595-1,596, unit 12)6-101.8-3.0
Shale, silty, with limonite (Dott's unit 11)10.03.0
Middle member  
Limestone, brown, crinoidal (unit 10), probably equivalent to the Idenbro Limestone Member0.20.06
Lower member6018.3
Shale, silty (unit 9)18.05.5
Sandstone, thin-bedded, and shale (unit 8)10.03.0
Shale, silty, with a few sandy streaks (unit 7)32.09.8
Lenapah Limestone, Eleventh Street limestone [essentially the type section of the Eleventh Street limestone, proposed by F. C. Greene (reported by Dott, 1941, p. 1,593), which was in NE sec. 11, T. 19 N., R. 13 E., along the south side of Eleventh Street at this place]8.22.5
Limestone, brown, fossiliferous (unit 6)1.50.5
Shale, gray, calcareous (unit 5)2.50.8
Limestone, nodular, fossiliferous (unit 4)0.20.06
Shale, gray (unit 3)3.00.9
Limestone, brown, earthy (unit 2)1.00.3
Nowata Shale  
Shale, gray5+1.5+

Outcrop 27--At tank farm on Coal Creek, 2 mi (3.2 km) north of Glenpool, Tulsa County, Oklahoma (from west bank of Coal Creek near the center of NW-SW sec. 2, westward to road cut on US-75, along the west line of NW-NW-SW sec. 2, T. 17 N., R. 12 E.; Sapulpa South Quadrangle). Measured by A. P. Bennison [see Bennison et al. (1979, p. 9) for top and Bennison (1984, p. 45) for main part]. This section was indicated as the type section of the "Watkins shale member" by Bennison et al. (1984), a preoccupied name (see text). It now serves as the principal reference section for the Glenpool limestone bed. Thickness
ft m
Seminole Formation11+3.4+
Sandstone ("Tulsa"), thin-bedded, shaly51.5
Shale, gray, silty61.8
Lost Branch Formation34.010.4
Calcilutite, skeletal (packstone), pale-orange, lenticular, dolomitized (Glenpool limestone bed), with crinoids, brachiopods, bryozoans, snails, and clams0.50.2
Shale, gray, with crinoid debris, brachiopods, bryozoans, and snails, especially at top267.9
Shale, black, fissile (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), with phosphate nodules and abundant characteristic conodont fauna2.50.8
Shale, gray, with septarian nodules and sparse foraminifers and snails, megaspores, and coaly fragments; varies from 2 ft to 7 ft (0.6-2.1 m) along this exposure51.5
Memorial Shale, upper member5.5+1.7+
Coal (Dawson)20.6
Mudstone, gray (underclay)1.50.5
Sandstone (Jenks), gray, calcareous, with mollusks2+0.6+
Nearly 3 mi (4.8 km) southward along US-75, on the center of west line of SW-NW-NW sec. 23, T. 17 N., R. 12 E., 1 ft (0.3 m) of orange-weathering, partly dolomitized, skeletal calcarenite was designated the type section of the Glenpool limestone bed by Bennison (1984, p. 118). It overlies several feet of fossiliferous shale that contains well-preserved brachiopods (including Mesolobus), bryozoans, crinoid debris, echinoid debris, snails, and small corals.
Three miles (4.8 km) to the east, along the north line of NE NW sec. 5, T. 17 N., R. 13 E., below the Jenks sandstone, A. P. Bennison recently discovered a sandy, fossiliferous limestone (middle member of the Memorial Shale) that may be the southern equivalent of the Idenbro Limestone Member. No thickness is estimated for the upper Memorial interval.

Outcrop 28--West of Alt. US-75 bridge over South Duck Creek, 2.5 mi (4.0 km) south of Mounds, Okmulgee County, Oklahoma (in gully in south bank of creek near center of east line of SE-NE sec. 30, T. 16 N., R. 12 E.; Lake Boren Quadrangle). Measured by A. P. Bennison in 1982. From this outcrop southward, the formational classification of east-central Oklahoma, in which formational units of Kansas and northeastern Oklahoma introduced or revised in this report are recognized as members of the Holdenville Shale, is used. This change in rank of the Lost Branch Formation and Memorial Shale coincides with the southward loss of definite recognition of the middle limestone member of the Memorial Shale (which is probably equivalent to the Idenbro Limestone Member). Thickness
ft m
Seminole Formation10.2+3.1+
Sandstone, gray, thin- to medium-bedded6+1.8+
Shale, brownish-gray10.3
Shale, dark-gray, coaly0.40.1
Coal ("Tulsa")0.20.06
Mudstone, gray (underclay), with silicified wood1.80.5
Sandstone ("Tulsa"), gray, calcareous0.80.2
Holdenville Shale  
Lost Branch Member12+3.7+
Calcilutite, skeletal, yellowish (Glenpool limestone bed), with brachiopods, crinoid pieces, and bryozoans0.60.2
Shale, gray, with sparse brachiopods and foraminifers11+3.4+

Beggs Core (OBC) (Oklahoma Geological Survey C-00-11)--4 mi (6.4 km) north-northwest of Beggs, Okmulgee County, Oklahoma (SW NE NE NE SE sec. 1, T. 15 N., R. 11 E.; Lake Boren Quadrangle). Described by L. A. Hemish; summarized by P. H. Heckel. Thickness
ft m
Checkerboard Limestone (53.0-56.5 ft)3.51.1
Calcilutite, skeletal, gray, shaly toward top3.51.1
Seminole Formation (56.5-83.8 ft)27.38.3
Siltstone, gray, interbedded with cross-laminated sandstone and shale with macerated plant debris25.37.7
Shale, dark, with coal stringers toward base1.10.3
Coal ("Tulsa")0.20.06
Mudstone, gray (underclay)0.70.2
Holdenville Shale73.2+22.3+
Lost Branch Member (83.8-149.5 ft)65.720.0
Limestone, gray, sandy, fossiliferous (Glenpool limestone bed)0.50.2
Shale, gray to dark-gray, calcareous16.75.1
Shale, dark-gray, with thin light sandstone lenses and burrows11.03.4
Shale, dark-gray, with thin light sandstone layers, decreasing in lower 4 ft (1.2 m)25.07.6
Shale, dark-gray3.00.9
Shale, black, hard (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), with sparse fossils in basal foot5.81.8
Shale, dark-gray, carbonaceous at base3.71.1
Memorial Shale Member (149.5-157.0 ft)7.5+2.3+
Coal (Dawson)0.70.2
Shale, gray to light-gray, with plant fragments4.61.4
Sandstone (Jenks), gray (to base of core)2.2+0.7+

Outcrop 29--On tributary to Salt Creek, 2 mi (3.2 km) northwest of Beggs, Okmulgee County, Oklahoma (along north and west banks of creek from center of north line of the north half to the center of the north half of SE NE sec. 23, T. 15 N., R. 11 E.; Lake Boren Quadrangle). Discovered by A. P. Bennison; estimated by P. H. Heckel. Thickness
ft m
Holdenville Shale20.5+6.3+
Lost Branch Member20+6.1+
Shale, dark-gray, with limestone nodules123.7
Shale, black (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), with sparse conodonts, including one characteristic species51.5
Covered30.9
Memorial Shale Member0.5+0.2+
Coal (Dawson)0.50.2
The type area of the Checkerboard Limestone is along Checkerboard Creek, 1 mi (1.6 km) to the west and up-section. The orange limestone exposed 1.2 mi (1.9 km) to the east, near the center west line of NW sec. 19, T. 15 N., R. 12 E., would appear from consideration of topography and regional dip to be below the Dawson coal and thus not Glenpool limestone as once thought.

Outcrop 30--In creek bed southwest of Dentonville, Okmulgee County, Oklahoma (NW NE NW NW sec. 4, T. 14 N., R. 11 E.; Nuyaka Quadrangle). This is stop 22 of Bennison et al. (1984); measured by P. H. Heckel in 1983. Thickness
ft m
Checkerboard Limestone2.00.6
Calcilutite, skeletal (exposed upstream)2.00.6
Seminole Formation7.12.2
Shale, gray, darker toward base, with megaspores5.01.5
Coal ("Tulsa")0.10.03
Mudstone, gray (underclay)2.0 0.6
Holdenville Shale3.0+0.9+
Lost Branch Member1.5+0.5+
Calcarenite, skeletal, sandy, yellowish-weathering (Glenpool limestone bed), with brachiopods, crinoid debris, bryozoans, foraminifers, and sparse conodonts, including the highest occurrence of Neognathodus in this section0.50.2
Shale, gray1.0+0.3

Edna Core (OEC) (Oklahoma Geological Survey C-00-17)--2.5 mi (4 km) north-northeast of Edna, Okmulgee County, Oklahoma (NW NW NE SW NW sec. 3 1, T. 15 N., R. 11 E.; Nuyaka Quadrangle). Described by L. A. Hemish; summarized and classified by P. H. Heckel. Thickness
ft m
Checkerboard Limestone (252.8-256.4 ft)3.61.1
Calcilutite, skeletal, gray, shaly at base3.61.1
Seminole Formation (256.4-262.6 ft)6.21.9
Shale, dark, with light silty sandstone laminae3.91.2
Shale, dark-gray, with plant fragments0.60.2
Coal ("Tulsa")0.40.1
Mudstone, greenish-gray (underclay)1.30.4
Holdenville Shale62.4+19.0
Lost Branch Member (262.6-321.4 ft)58.817.9
Limestone, sandy, fossiliferous (Glenpool limestone bed); grades upward to fossiliferous sandstone0.80.2
Sandstone, gray, shaly, calcareous1.70.5
Shale, gray, calcareous, with sparse fossils and small carbonate nodules10.43.2
Shale, dark, with light sandstone lenses and laminae32.59.9
Shale, dark-gray, with sparse fossils, including ammonoids9.02.7
Shale, black (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), with sparse pyritized fossils, including cephalopods and brachiopods3.91.2
Shale, dark-gray, calcareous, with pyrite and carbonaceous debris in base0.50.2
Memorial Shale Member (321.4-325 ft)3.6+1.1
Coal (Dawson)0.50.2
Shale, dark-gray, with coal stringers0.20.06
Mudstone, gray (underclay)0.90.3
Sandstone (Jenks), gray (to base of core)2.00.6

Morse Core (OMC) (Oklahoma Geological Survey C-00-18)--1.2 mi (1.9 km) north-northwest of Morse, Okfuskee County, Oklahoma (SE SW NW SW SE sec. 31, T. 13 N., R. 10 E., Mason Quadrangle). Described by L. A. Hemish; summarized and classified by P. H. Heckel. Thickness
ft m
Checkerboard Limestone (322.0-324.3 ft)2.30.7
Calcilutite, skeletal, gray, impure, with conspicuous brachiopods and crinoids2.30.7
Seminole Formation (324.3-330.4 ft)6.11.9
Shale, dark-gray, calcareous, with sparse fossils0.50.2
Shale, dark-gray, with coal stringers in upper third1.20.4
Coal ("Tulsa")0.10.03
Mudstone, dark (underclay)0.40.1
Mudstone, gray, crumbly (underclay)3.91.2
Holdenville Shale59.6+18.2
Lost Branch Member (330.4-378.3 ft)47.914.6
Shale, dark, silty, interbedded with sandstone, gray, bioturbated, calcareous in upper two thirds; top is position of Glenpool limestone bed in Edna core (OEC)29.69.0
Shale, dark-gray, silty, with thin sandstone stringers6.01.8
Shale, dark-gray, with scattered shells4.21.3
Shale, black (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), with phosphate nodules and scattered fossils6.11.9
Shale, dark, with pyrite and brachiopods2.00.6
Memorial Shale Member (378.3-390.0 ft)11.7+3.6+
Coal (Dawson) interbedded with mudstone, gray0.70.2
Mudstone, gray, blocky (underclay)1.00.3
Mudstone, gray, interbedded with sandstone, dark and light8.52.6
Sandstone (Jenks), gray, crossbedded (to base of core)1.5+0.5+

Outcrop 31--On Nuyaka Creek at 0-56,3 mi (4.8 km) northeast of Okemah, Okfuskee County, Oklahoma (in cutbank of creek just west of 0-56 bridge in NE SE NE sec. 32, T. 12 N., R. 10 E.; Okemah Quadrangle). This is stop 7 of Dott and Bennison (1981, p. 27), designated the type locality of the Nuyaka Creek black shale bed [Bennison (1981, p. 5), as emended from the west line to the east line of NE sec. 32]. Because J. E. Barrick and D. R. Boardman reported that only the lower 2 ft (0.6 m) of the Nuyaka Creek black shale bed and the upper 4 ft (1.2 m) of the underlying gray shale bed were well exposed when they collected the conodonts and ammonoids in May 1990, the principal reference section for the Nuyaka Creek black shale bed is chosen 12 mi (19 km) to the southwest at outcrop 32, where a complete vertical sequence is exposed. Thickness
ft m
Holdenville Shale23.5+7.2+
Lost Branch Member15.5+4.7+
Shale, gray, with limestone nodules51.5
Shale, black, with phosphate nodules (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed, type section); contains abundant conodont fauna characteristic of this bed elsewhere, 1-2 ft (0.3-0.6 m) above base5.51.7
Shale, gray, with zone of limestone nodules 1 ft (0.3 m) below top; contains ammonoids and other mollusks51.5
Covered20.6
Memorial Shale Member6.0+1.8+
Sandstone (Jenks), gray, calcareous, interbedded with shale, gray, silty, reported at bridge footing6.0+1.8+
Bennison (1981, p. 5) reported 10-40 ft (3-12 m) of fossiliferous gray shale overlying the black shale in this area, which in turn is overlain and channeled by massive sandstones of the Seminole Formation.

Outcrop 32--In ravine into North Canadian River, 2 mi (3.2 km) east-southeast of Bearden, Okfuskee County, Oklahoma (south bank of ravine near center of SW SW sec. 15, T. 10 N., R. 9 E.; Okemah Southeast Quadrangle). Discovered and measured by A. P. Bennison; partly sampled by P. H. Heckel in 1983. This section is chosen as the principal reference section of the Nuyaka Creek black shale bed because it is the best exposure of the vertical sequence of this unit known in this region. Thickness
ft m
Seminole Formation5.0+1.5+
Sandstone, brown-gray, thin-bedded5.0+1.5+
Holdenville Shale55.0+16.8+
Lost Branch Member3410.4
Shale, gray, with ironstone nodules, siltier toward top (poorly exposed)257.6
Shale, black, fissile (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), with phosphate nodules and characteristic conodont fauna72.1
Shale, dark-gray, with limestone nodules and brachiopods, snails, clams, ammonoids, and crinoid debris20.6
Memorial Shale Member21+6.4+
Shale, dark-gray, with coaly fragments (Dawson equivalent)0.10.03
Mudstone, gray1.30.4
Sandstone, calcareous, with crinoidal zone in middle (Jenks?)5.51.7
Shale, gray to reddish103.0
Sandstone, brownish, with mollusks (equivalent to Idenbro limestone?)4.0+1.2+
It is not known whether the lower fossiliferous sandstone is also a marine facies of the Jenks sandstone of the upper unit of the Memorial Shale or a southern equivalent of the middle unit (=Idenbro limestone, the upper member of the Lenapah Limestone).
The High Spring shale type section of Bennison (1984, pp. 115-116) was designated 3 mi (4.8 km) to the northeast in SE sec. 1, T. 10 N., R. 9 E. Samples from an exposure just to the south, near center of north line of NE NE sec. 12, T. 10 N., R. 9 E., contain a sparse conodont fauna that suggests possible correlation with the Eleventh Street limestone, the lower member of the Lenapah Limestone; a red-weathering, skeletal limestone exposed in the field a little farther southward may be a southern extension of the Eleventh Street limestone. A shale sample sent to me by A. P. Bennison from a locality in NE NE SE sec. 22, T. 10 N., R. 9 E., nearly on strike 3 mi (4.8 km) southwestward from the High Spring shale type area and 1 mi (1.6 km) southeast of the Lost Branch locality (outcrop 32), and estimated to be at least 70 ft (21 m) below the Nuyaka Creek black shale, contains a more abundant Neognathodus-dominated conodont fauna similar to that found in the Eleventh Street limestone in northeastern Oklahoma.

Outcrop 33--On road 2.5 mi (4 km) west of Spaulding, Hughes County, Oklahoma (along south line of SW SE sec. 5, T. 6 N., R. 8 E.; Holdenville Quadrangle). This is stop 5 of Dott and Bennison (1981, p. 20). Thickness
ft m
Seminole Formation70.0+21.3+
Sandstone, massive, with lenses of chert conglomerate in lower part70.021.3
Holdenville Shale22.5+6.8+
Lost Branch Member17.55.3
Shale, gray154.6
Shale, black (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed)2.00.6
Limestone (Homer School limestone bed), weathered; A. P. Bennison reported a better exposure less than 1 mi (1.6 km) to the southwest (center west line of SW SW NW sec. 8) where it contains conspicuous phylloid algae0.50.2
Memorial Shale Member5.0+1.5+
Shale, green over red5.0+1.5+
This is essentially the type area of the Seminole Formation, which was named by Taff (1901) in a Geologic Folio that covers the region extending southward from 1 mi (1.6 km) south of this outcrop. It is also the type area of the Holdenville Shale. Although the Nuyaka Creek black shale bed is not well exposed at outcrop 33, it is well exposed in a gully near the center of sec. 35, T. 8 N., R. 8 E., approximately 8 mi (13 km) north-northeast of here [and 2.5 mi (4.0 km) northwest of Holdenvillel in the upper part of the Holdenville Shale, where it contains an abundant fauna that includes ammonoids, fusulinids, and the characteristic conodonts (D. R. Boardman, personal communications, 1984-1990).

Outcrop 34--In riverbank 1 mi (1.6 km) north of Sasakwa, Seminole County, Oklahoma (south cutbank of Little River in SW NE SE NW sec. 25, T. 6 N., R. 7 E.; Sasakwa Quadrangle). This is the lower part of the section illustrated as stop 4 of Dott and Bennison (1981, p. 18). Thickness
ft m
Seminole Formation164.9
Sandstone, brown92.7
Shale, red to green, with siltstone lenses72.1
Holdenville Shale28+8.5+
Lost Branch Member237.0
Shale, gray175.2
Shale, black (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), with phosphate nodules and characteristic conodont fauna according to D. R. Boardman and J. E. Baffick51.5
Calcilutite, skeletal, gray, dense, with chaetetids (Homer School limestone bed)10.3
Memorial Shale Member5.0+1.5+
Shale, gray, and sandstone, shaly5.0+1.5+
Twenty feet (6 m) of gray shale in gullies above the brown Seminole sandstone contains a conodont fauna (Pavlicek, 1986) and an ammonoid fauna (Boardman et al., in press) that indicate correlation with the Exline limestone of Kansas and Missouri. Less than 1 mi (1.6 km) south of here, the top of the Homer School limestone bed is well exposed for some distance in the creek bed just south of the bridge on the east-west road, just east of the northwest comer of sec. 36, T. 6 N., R. 7 E. There the Homer School bed contains chaetetids, small corals, brachiopods, crinoid pieces, and bryozoans.

Outcrop 35--On hillside 2 mi (3.2 km) south of Sasakwa, Seminole County, Oklahoma (in clearing around oil well and eastward down the road ditch along the south line of SE SW SE sec. 12, T. 5 N., R. 7 E.; Sasakwa Quadrangle). This is stop 2 of Dott and Bennison (1981, pp. 14-16), partly remeasured by J. E. Barrick and D. R. Boardman; summarized and classified by P. H. Heckel. The exposure in the road ditch is regarded as the principal reference section of the Homer School limestone bed. Thickness
ft m
Sasakwa Limestone5.0+1.5
Calcilutite, skeletal-algal, somewhat slumped51.5
Seminole Formation144.3
Mudstone, gray-brown, mottled30.9
Sandstone, yellowish0.50.2
Shale, reddish to green-gray, with caliche nodules in lower part61.8
Sandstone and shale with chert pebbles20.6
Sandstone, gray2.50.8
Holdenville Shale55.0+16.6
Lost Branch Member38.011.4
Shale, gray, with lenses of brachiopods and bryozoans; contains crinoid pieces, fish debris, ostracodes, and sparse conodonts, including highest occurrence of Neognathodus 5 ft (1.5 m) below top51.5
Shale, gray, with scattered fossils (not sampled)28.08.4
Shale, dark-gray, phosphatic (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed); contains characteristic conodont fauna according to J. E. Barrick and D. R. Boardman4.01.2
Limestone, skeletal, with chaetetids (Homer School limestone bed)1.00.3
Memorial Shale Member17.0+5.2
Shale, gray, sandy30.9
Sandstone, gray, crossbedded, with chert pebbles144.3
Only the Seminole and the upper half and the base of the Lost Branch Formations are well exposed. The Sasakwa limestone type section is in an old quarry, 2 mi (3.2 km) to the north, on the south edge of Sasakwa in NE-NW-NW sec. 1, T. 5 N., R. 7 E., where there is at least 20 ft (6 m) of skeletal-algal calcilutite (Dott and Bennison, 1981, p. 14). This limestone is probably equivalent to the Checkerboard Limestone.

Outcrop 36--West of Homer School, east of Ada, Pontotoc County, Oklahoma [bluff in south-central sec. 25, T. 4 N., R. 6 E., 0.5 mi (0.8 km) west of Homer School; Ada and Francis quadrangles]. This information has been modified from Morgan (1924, p. 104), who implicitly designated this the type section of the Homer limestone (now Homer School limestone bed). Because Morgan's (1924) exposure has not been rediscovered, the principal reference section of the Homer School limestone bed is chosen in the road ditch 2 mi (3 km) south of Sasakwa (outcrop 35), approximately 12 mi (19 km) northeast of here. Thickness
ft m
Sasakwa limestone (no thickness given)  
[Interval of 40 ft (12 m), presumably shale and sandstone; would include Seminole Formation and upper part of Lost Branch Member of Holdenville Shale]  
Homer School limestone bed Limestone, dark-gray, with scattered chaetetids and fusulinids; although no thickness was given for this locality, Morgan (1924) reported this limestone to be 3 ft (0.9 m) thick to the northeast  

Sections for figure 9

Amerada Core (NAC) (Schroeder no. 1)--4.4 mi ( 7.1 km) north-northwest of Nehawka, Cass County, Nebraska (NE-SE sec. 26, T. 11 N., R. 12 E.; reposited at Nebraska Geological Survey, Lincoln). Description by Condra (1939); classification modified by P. H. Heckel based on biostratigraphy of samples taken from core. Thickness
ft m
Hertha Limestone [considered most of Swope Limestone by Condra (1939)] (322.0-338.2 ft)16.24.9
Sniabar Limestone Member [considered Bethany Falls Limestone Member by Condra (1939)] (322.0-336.8 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, with shale near middle14.84.5
Mound City Shale Member [considered upper part of Hushpuckney Shale Member by Condra (1939)] (336.8-338.2 ft)  
Shale, dark-gray, with thin dense limestone at base and abundant conodont fauna like that found in Mound City Shale Member in Kansas City area1.40.4
Upper Pleasanton unit [considered lower part of Hushpuckney Shale Member by Condra (1939)] (338.2-341.4 ft)  
Mudstone, gray, blocky3.21.0
Exline limestone [considered Middle Creek Limestone Member by Condra (1939)] (341.4-343.0 ft)  
Calcarenite, osagia-grain; overlies skeletal calcilutite with large oncolites1.60.5
Lower Pleasanton unit [considered Ladore Shale by Condra (1939)] (343.0-348.0 ft)  
Shale, gray, micaceous, with small limy concretions5.01.5
Lost Branch Formation [considered Hertha Limestone by Condra (1939)] (348.0-353.0 ft)5.01.5
Cooper Creek Limestone Member (348.0-351.0 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, gray, with "cavernous reticulate" fabric3.00.9
Shale unit (351.0-351.7 ft)  
Shale, gray, fossiliferous, with abundant conodont fauna like that described by Swade (1985) from thin shale below Cooper Creek Limestone Member in Iowa core CP-370.70.2
Sni Mills Limestone Member (351.7-353.0 ft)  
Nowata-Memorial Shale [considered Bourbon (=Pleasanton) group by Condra (1939)] (353.0-370.7 ft)17.75.4
Mudstone, bluish, with small limy concretions3.51.1
Mudstone, bluish to reddish, sandy9.52.9
Shale, dark-gray, sandy1.00.3
Shale, reddish, micaceous, sandy3.71.1
Altamont Limestone [considered probably Pawnee Limestone by Condra (1939)] (370.7-374.5 ft)3.81.2
Worland Limestone Member (370.7-373.2 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, gray, shaly2.50.8
Lake Neosho Shale Member (373.2-373.8 ft)  
Shale, gray, fossiliferous (noted as borrowed for class purposes by M. K. Elias)0.60.2
Amoret Limestone Member (373.8-374.5 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, gray, with shaly zones that yield conodonts characteristic of Lake Neosho Shale and Amoret Limestone Members in Iowa cores CP-37 and CP-22 studied by Swade (1985)0.70.2

Offutt Core (NOC)--Offutt Air Force Base (DH no. 247), Sarpy County, Nebraska (center of south half of SE SE NW sec. 11, T. 13 N., R. 13 E.; reposited at the Nebraska Geological Survey, Lincoln). Described and classified by P. H. Heckel. Thickness
ft m
Hertha Limestone (192.7-214.3 ft)21.66.6
Sniabar Limestone Member (192.7-211.7 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, with osagia-grain calcarenite toward top and interbedded with fossiliferous shale throughout19.05.8
Mound City Shale Member (211.7-214.3 ft)2.60.8
Shale, gray, fossiliferous, with dark-gray zone at base; contains abundant conodont fauna like that found in Mound City Shale Member in Kansas City area2.30.7
Shell bed0.30.09
Upper Pleasanton unit (214.3-217.4 ft)3.10.9
Coal (Ovid)<0.1<0.03
Missing interval1.2+0.4+
Mudstone, gray, blocky1.80.5
Exline limestone (217.4-224.0 ft)6.62.0
Calcilutite, barren, brecciated in yellow shale at top2.30.7
Calcarenite, skeletal, massive3.51.1
Calcilutite, skeletal, with coated grains0.80.2
Lower Pleasanton unit (224.0-229.4 ft)5.41.6
Mudstone, blocky, gray with red mottling2.10.6
Missing interval2.00.6
Shale, gray, mottled reddish, calcareous1.30.4
Lost Branch Formation (229.4-232.9 ft)3.51.1
Cooper Creek Limestone Member (229.4-232.0 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, with shale-filled fractures in top and shale partings in base2.60.8
Shale unit (232.0-232.9 ft)  
Shale, dark-gray, with shell concentration at base and fish teeth and abundant conodont fauna like that described by Swade (1985) from thin shale below Cooper Creek Limestone Member in Iowa core CP-370.90.3
Nowata-Memorial Shale (232.9-258.1 ft)25.27.7
Mudstone, blocky, green, to crumbly shale9.02.7
Mudstone, red, sandy, with limy nodules at top16.24.9
Altamont Limestone (258.1-262.1 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, and fossiliferous shale (undifferentiated) with conodont fauna in lower foot similar to that of lower part of Altamont Limestone in Iowa cores CP-37 and CP-22 studied by Swade (1985)4.01.2

Logan Core (ILC) (Iowa Geological Survey WC-22)--East side of Logan, Harrison County, Iowa (NW SE NE NE sec. 19, T. 79 N., R. 42 W.; reposited at Iowa Geological Survey, Iowa City). Described by P. H. Heckel. Thickness
ft m
Hertha Limestone (48.6-62.8 ft)14.24.3
Sniabar Limestone Member (48.6-60.8 ft)12.23.7
Calcarenite, skeletal, abraded, coated-grain, with shale bed3.41.0
Calcilutite, skeletal, argillaceous toward base8.82.7
Mound City Shale Member (60.8-62.8 ft)  
Shale, gray, fossiliferous, with thin, argillaceous limestone at base and thin, dark shale below middle containing abundant conodont fauna like that found in Mound City Shale Member in Kansas City area2.00.6
Upper Pleasanton unit (62.8-68.2 ft)  
Shale, gray, with fossils at top and irregular limestone nodules in middle; becomes mudstone at base5.41.6
Exline limestone (68.2-71.7 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, shaly, with zones of fine-grained calcarenite and shale-filled fractures toward top3.51.1
Lower Pleasanton unit (71.7-84.3 ft)12.63.8
Mudstone, red, with limy nodules near base3.00.9
Sandstone, gray, argillaceous; grades downward to shale with scattered red mottling and fracture filling9.62.9
Lost Branch Formation (84.3-90.7 ft)6.42.0
Cooper Creek Limestone Member (84.3-89.4 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, with spar-filled fractures and shale partings; argillaceous at top5.11.6
Shale unit (89.4-90.7 ft)  
Shale, dark-gray, fossiliferous, with darker layers and abundant conodont fauna like that described by Swade (1985) from shale below Cooper Creek Limestone Member in Iowa core CP-371.30.4
Nowata-Memorial Shale (90.7-117.6 ft)26.98.2
Mudstone, gray, blocky, with small limy nodules6.72.0
Mudstone, red, blocky, to shale with limy nodules16.04.9
Calcilutite, barren, dolomitized, with vertical fractures0.30.09
Mudstone, green to red-mottled, with limy nodules3.91.2
Altamont Limestone (117.6-121.3 ft)3.71.1
Worland Limestone Member (117.6-120.4 ft)2.80.9
Calcilutite, skeletal, with birdseye and red-shale-filled fractures1.00.3
Shale, gray-green, fossiliferous, interbedded with skeletal calcilutite1.80.5
Lake Neosho Shale Member (120.4-12 1.1 ft)  
Shale, gray, fossiliferous, with abundant conodont fauna like that described by Swade (1985) from Lake Neosho Shale Member in Iowa cores CP-37 and CP-220.70.2
Amoret Limestone Member (121.1-121.3 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal0.20.06

Jefferson Quarry Core (IJC) (lower) (Iowa Geological Survey 41-74)--East of IA-25, 11 mi (18 km) north of Greenfield, Adair County, Iowa (NW-SE-NE-SW-NW sec. 17, T. 77 N., R. 31 W.; reposited at Iowa Geological Survey, Iowa City). Described by J. Newbury of Schildberg Construction Company; summarized and classified by P. H. Heckel. Thickness
ft m
Hertha Limestone (99.1-107.4 ft)8.32.5
Sniabar Limestone Member (99.1-106.3 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, interbedded with fossiliferous shale7.22.2
Mound City Shale Member (106.3-107.4 ft)  
Shale, greenish, fossiliferous, with black phosphatic zone in middle1.10.3
Upper Pleasanton unit (107.4-114.6 ft)  
Mudstone, gray with purple mottling, red zone in lower part7.52.3
Exline limestone? (see comment on core ISC) (114.6-114.9 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, nodular, in green shale with conodont Idiognathodus0.30.09
Lower Pleasanton unit (apparently missing at disconformity)  
Lost Branch Formation (114.9-119.9 ft)5.01.5
Cooper Creek Limestone Member (114.9-118.2 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, with abundant spar-filled voids; shale-parted, brecciated calcilutite in top 0.5 ft (0.2 m) yielded no conodonts3.31.0
Shale unit (118.2-119.3 ft)  
Shale, green, fossiliferous, with abundant conodont fauna like that described by Swade (1985) from shale below Cooper Creek Limestone Member in Iowa core CP-371.10.3
Sni Mills Limestone Member (119.3-119.9 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, with shale bed near base0.60.2
Nowata-Memorial Shale (to base of core; 119.9-124.9 ft)  
Mudstone, red, blocky, with limy pebbles and gray zone at top5+1.5+

Stanzel Quarry Core (ISC) (Iowa Geological Survey 12-68)--North of IA-92, 10 mi (16 km) west of Winterset, Madison County, Iowa (NE NW SE SW NE, sec. 5, T. 75 N., R. 29 W.; reposited at Iowa Geological Survey, Iowa City). Described by J. Newbury of Schildberg Construction Company; summarized and classified by P. H. Heckel. Thickness
ft m
Hertha Limestone (154.0-164.3 ft)10.33.1
Sniabar Limestone Member (154.0-162.7 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, interbedded with fossiliferous shale8.72.7
Mound City Shale Member (162.7-164.3 ft)  
Shale, black, with gray zone at top1.60.5
Upper Pleasanton unit (164.3-172.1 ft)  
Mudstone, gray, blocky, with limy nodules7.82.4
Exline limestone? (172.1-173.4 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, nodular, brecciated, with shale-filled fractures and voids; occurrence of conodonts Idiognathodus andidioprioniodus, reported by Nielsen (1987, p. 75), suggests that this bed may represent the Exline limestone by comparison with conodont faunas described by Swade (1985) from Iowa core CP-37 where the Exline limestone rests on a very thin [(0.3 ft (0.09 m)] lower Pleasanton shale unit above the Cooper Creek Limestone Member; core IJC is tentatively interpreted in a similar fashion, although the conodont evidence is less definite1.30.4
Lower Pleasanton unit (apparently missing at disconformity)  
Lost Branch Formation (173.4-178.2 ft)4.81.5
Cooper Creek Limestone Member (173.4-177.0 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, nodular, brecciated, with shale partings and shale-filled voids; conodont fauna, reported by Nielson (1987, p. 75), has common Diplognathodus, as reported also by Swade (1985) from Cooper Creek Limestone Member in core CP-373.61.1
Shale unit (177.0-177.8 ft)  
Shale, gray, with dark-gray zones and abundant conodont fauna like that reported by Swade (1985) from shale below Cooper Creek Limestone Member in core CP-370.80.2
Sni Mills Limestone Member (177.8-178.2 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal0.40.1
Nowata-Memorial Shale (to base of core; 178.2-183.7 ft)  
Mudstone, red, blocky, with gray zone at top5.5+1.7+

Osceola Core (CP-37)--Described at beginning of appendix.

Mystic Core (CP-22)--3 mi (4.8 km) northwest of Mystic, Appanoose County, Iowa (SE SW SE sec. 36, T. 70 N., R. 19 W.). This core did not cut the Lost Branch Formation but is included in fig. 9 because it and CP-37 form the basis for the conodont zonation of the upper Desmoinesian Mannaton Group of Swade (1985), which is used to confirm correlation of the formations in this group among the cores and outcrops from Iowa to Oklahoma.

Nodaway County Core (MNC) (Missouri Geological Survey WM-5)--8 mi (13 km) north-northwest of Maryville, Nodaway County, Missouri (SE-NW sec. 10, T. 65 N., R. 36 W.; reposited at Missouri Geological Survey, Rolla). Described by K. Deason; summarized and classified by P. H. Heckel. Thickness
ft m
Hertha Limestone (851.5-874.0 ft)22.56.9
Sniabar Limestone Member (851.5-870.9 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, with shale in top, near middle, and at base19.45.9
Mound City Shale Member (870.9-874.0 ft)  
Shale, black, phosphatic, with gray zones at top and base and limy horizon at base3.10.9
Upper Pleasanton unit (874.0-892-6 ft)18.65.7
Mudstone, gray, blocky, with coal smut at top (Ovid coal) and limy nodules in base6.01.8
Sandstone, gray, argillaceous; coarsens upward12.63.8
Exline limestone (892.6-900.8 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, dense, brownish, with thin dark shale partings8.22.5
Lower Pleasanton unit (900.8-903.6 ft)  
Mudstone, gray, blocky2.80.9
Lost Branch Formation (903.6-911.9 ft)8.32.5
Cooper Creek Limestone Member (903.6-911.0 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, gray7.42.3
Shale unit (911.0-911.9 ft)  
Shale, black, phosphatic (Nuyaka Creek black shale bed), with abundant conodont fauna like that described by Swade (1985) from shale below Cooper Creek Limestone Member in Iowa core CP-370.90.3
Memorial Shale (911.9-920.0 ft)  
Mudstone, blocky, gray, with coal smut at top and limy nodules below8.12.5
Lenapah Limestone, Norfleet Limestone Member (920.0-921.7 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, nodular, in green mudstone matrix1.70.5
Nowata Shale (921.7-927.2 ft)  
Mudstone, blocky, gray, with reddish mottling and limy nodules5.51.7
Altamont Limestone (927.2-936.7 ft)9.52.9
Worland Limestone Member (927.2-934.6 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal; grades upward to calcarenite7.42.3
Lake Neosho Shale Member (934.6-935.5 ft)  
Shale, green-gray, laminated, with abundant conodont fauna like that described by Swade (1985) from Lake Neosho Shale Member in Iowa cores CP-37 and CP-220.90.3
Amoret Limestone Member (935.5-936.7 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, shaly in base1.20.4

Rochester Core (MRC) (Missouri Geological Survey WM-10)--3.5 mi (5.6 km) north-northwest of Rochester, Andrew County, Missouri (SE-SE sec. 4, T. 59 N., R. 34 W.; reposited at Missouri Geological Survey, Rolla). Described by B. Netzler and K. Deason; summarized and modified by P. H. Heckel. Thickness
ft m
Hertha Limestone (506.8-517.0 ft)10.23.1
Sniabar Limestone Member (506.8-515.9 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, with shale beds near middle and base9.12.8
Mound City Shale Member (515.9-517.0 ft)  
Shale, black1.10.3
Upper Pleasanton unit (517.0-585.6 ft)68.620.9
Mudstone, blocky, gray, with limy nodules2.30.7
Sandstone, gray, with shale toward base and top14.74.5
Shale, gray, interbedded with sandstone and two coaly horizons (Locust Creek) in upper part (at 535 ft and 540 ft)15.24.6
Sandstone, gray, micaceous36.411.1
Exline limestone (585.6-586.6 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, dense, brownish1.00.3
Lower Pleasanton unit (586.6-593.1 ft)6.52.0
Shale, gray, fossiliferous2.50.8
Coal (Grain Valley)0.20.06
Mudstone, blocky, gray, with plant remains in top and limy nodules in base3.81.2
Lost Branch Formation (593.1-597.4 ft)4.31.3
Cooper Creek Limestone Member (593.1-595.2 ft)  
Calcilutite, skeletal, with shale partings and fracture fillings at top2.10.6
Shale unit (595.2-597.4 ft)  
Shale, gray, with shell hash in lower part and dark phosphatic zone above middle carrying abundant conodont fauna like that described by Swade (1985) from shale below Cooper Creek Limestone Member in Iowa core CP-372.20.7
Memorial Shale (597.4-624.4 ft)27.08.2
Coal (Dawson)0.10.03
Mudstone, blocky, gray, reddish in lower part, with limestone nodules12.53.8
Sandstone, gray10.03.0
Shale, gray with reddish spots4.41.3
Lenapah Limestone, Norfleet Limestone Member (624.4-625.5 ft)  
Calcarenite, skeletal, with conodont fauna [reported by Greenberg (1986, p. 199)] similar to that of basal Lenapah Limestone southward in outcrop1.10.3
Nowata Shale (625.5-634.0 ft)  
Shale, gray, with reddish zone near middle; grades downward into blocky mudstone8.52.6
Altamont Limestone (634.0-640.3 ft)6.31.9
Worland Limestone Member (634.0-637.0 ft)  
Calcarenite, abraded-skeletal; overlies skeletal, shaly calcilutite3.00.9
Lake Neosho Shale Member (637.0-640.3 ft)  
Shale, gray, fossiliferous, with dark phosphatic zone in lower part carrying abundant conodont fauna like that described by Swade (1985) from Lake Neosho Shale Member in Iowa cores CP-37 and CP-223.31.0

Prev Page--Conclusions, References

Kansas Geological Survey, Geology
Placed on web Nov. 2, 2010; originally published 1991.
Comments to webadmin@kgs.ku.edu
The URL for this page is http://www.kgs.ku.edu/Publications/Bulletins/GS4/08_appA.html