I. >-

Hydrocarbons in 

Thermal Areas, 

Northwestern Wyomin

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 644-B

Prepared in cooperation with the National Park 

Service^ the Geological Survey of Wyoming^ and 

the Department of Geology of the University of 

Wyoming
Hydrocarbons in 

Thermal Areas, 

Northwestern Wyoming

By J. D. LOVE, U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY, and JOHN M. GOOD, NATIONAL PARK 

SERVICE

SHORTER CONTRIBUTIONS TO GENERAL GEOLOGY

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 644-B

Prepared in cooperation with the National Park 

Service^ the Geological Survey of Wyoming, and 

the Department of Geology of the University of 

Wyoming

UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON : 1970
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

WALTER J. HICKEL, Secretary

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

William T. Pecora, Director

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office 

Washington, D.C. 20402 - Price 40 cents (paper cover)
CONTENTS

Abstract. -_--__-_-__-_______-__--__-___-__-________

Introduction. _______________ _ _____________________

Characteristics and geologic setting of the localities. 

Sources of oil and sulfur_____________________________

Relation of thermal phenomena to emplacement of oil- _ _ 

Individual localities._--_---__-_-_---_____--__---_-__

Calcite Springs (loc. 1) ___________________________

Page 

Bl

1

2

3

3

3

3

Individual localities Continued

Tower Bridge (loc. 2) _____________

Rainbow Springs (loc. 3)__________

Sweetwater Mineral Springs (loc. 4). 

Cedar Mountain (loc. 5)___________

Conclusions __________________________

References cited______________________

Page

B9 

10 

16 

18 

22 

22

ILLUSTRATIONS

Page 

FIGURE 1. Relief map of northwestern Wyoming showing described localities of hydrocarbon seeps in thermal areas_____ B2

2. Map of Calcite Springs and Tower Bridge areas______________________________________________________ 4

3-6. Photographs:

3. View west across the Yellowstone River toward Calcite Springs locality___________________________ 5

4. View west at part of Calcite Springs locality where oil that emerged from the early basic breccia flowed

downslope and then was lithified into a tarry crust..________________________________________ 6

5. One of hottest sulfur and oil vents at Calcite Springs._______________________ -__________________ 7

6. View northeast across the Yellowstone River at Calcite Springs.________________________________ 8

7. Map of Rainbow Springs area_--__-___,____________________________________________________________ 10

8. Photograph of ledge of Pleistocene brown oil-stained conglomerate and active oil seeps ____________________ 11

9. Photograph of view northeast showing western part of Rainbow Springs locality_______---______--_-__-___ 13

10. Photograph showing untreated transparent amber-colored oil and associated water from Rainbow Springs

swamp that yielded Bison skull____________________________________________.____________________ 14

11. Gas chromatograms of the alkanes in unprocessed Rainbow Springs and Calcite Springs oils.______________ 15

12. Comparison of the gas chromatogram of the aliphatic hydrocarbons extracted from the Posidonian marine

shale with that of the aliphatic hydrocarbons extracted from Trinidad Lake asphalt.__________________ 15

13. Map showing locations of Sweetwater Mineral Springs and Cedar Mountain _____________________________ 16

14. Photograph of view east across Sweetwater Creek at Sweetwater Mineral Springs locality._________________ 18

15. Map showing Cedar Mountain oil seep and adjacent thermal localities near forks of the Shoshone River_____ 20

TABLE

Page 

TABLE 1. Composition of oil from seeps in Rainbow Springs locality, Yellowstone National Park, Wyo _____________ B14

iii

SHORTER CONTRIBUTIONS TO GENERAL GEOLOGY

HYDROCARBONS IN THERMAL AREAS, NORTHWESTERN

WYOMING

By J. D. LOVE, U.S. Geological Survey, and JOHN M. GOOD, National Park Service

ABSTRACT

Five natural occurrences of hydrocarbons in thermal areas 

lie in an arcuate southeastward- to eastward-trending area 70 

miles long in northwestern Wyoming. They are, from northwest 

to east: Tower Bridge, Calcite Springe, Rainbow Springs, Sweetwater Mineral Springs, and Cedar Mountain. The westernmost 

three are in Yellowstone National Park. All are associated with 

abundant sulfur and thermal springs and vents (active in four 

localities, recently extinct in one). Four are surrounded and 

underlain by volcanic rocks, which range in age from Eocene 

to Pleistocene. The fifth emerges from Paleozoic strata.

The source of the hydrocarbons could be Paleozoic or Mesozoic 

sedimentary rocks that underlie the surficial volcanics, but at 

Rainbow Springs the oil might have been distilled from 

Pleistocene nonmarine algae at shallow depth. Sulfur isotope 

analyses do not indicate conclusively whether the sulfur is of 

igneous or bacteriogenic origin.

In at least two of the localities, hot water and steam that 

derive their heat from an igneous source below the sedimentary 

sequent are believed to relate directly to the extraction of the 

hydrocarbons from the strata, to their subsequent transport 

upward along conduits, and their extrusion on the surface.

INTRODUCTION

The purpose of this report is to call attention to five 

natural occurrences of liquid hydrocarbons in thermal 

areas. Two (loc. 1 and 3, fig. 1) offer promise of yielding 

significant data on the geochemical processes that are 

responsible for the origin of oil in an unusual environment. This knowledge should, in turn, lead to a better 

understanding of the characteristics of the oil that results from these processes and of the mechanics of its 

emplacement. Two of the localities of hydrocarbons in 

thermal areas have already been obliterated by man 

(loc. 2 and 5, fig. 1), and a third (loc. 4) has been considerably altered. It is hoped that this preliminary discussion will stimulate the search for new localities and

encourage more sophisticated studies of those that remain before they, too, are damaged or destroyed and 

the opportunity for recording and interpreting this 

type of data is lost.

Hydrocarbons in thermal areas of northwestern 

Wyoming have been known or suspected ever since the 

verbal reports of John Colter, who observed "the great 

tar spring" at Cedar Mountain (loc. 5, fig. 1) in 1807 

(Chittenden, 1895, p. 23; 1901, p. 3781). Casual references to springs that contained oil, tar, bitumen, or 

asphalt in other parts of northwestern Wyoming were 

made by several explorers and writers. For example, 

Denig (1961, p. 141), in a manuscript written about 

1854 and published over a hundred years later, stated, 

"Some of the springs near the head of the Yellowstone 

are bituminous, sending forth a substance like tar, 

which is inflammable." Father DeSmet (letter of Jan. 

20, 1852, quoted by Chittenden, 1895, p. 388) likewise 

commented on the abundant "bituminous, sulphurous 

and boiling springs" between the sources of the Madison and Yellowstone Rivers in what is now northwestern Wyoming.

Despite the general knowledge among early trappers 

and explorers that oil seeps were present in thermal 

areas of this region, we have found no reference to these 

phenomena in any of the scientific studies by the Hayclen (1883) or the Hague (1904) groups or by any of 

the other pioneer geologists such as Comstock (1875) 

and Eldridge (1894) who worked in the region. As far 

as we have been able to determine, Alien and Day 

(1935) were the first scientists to make mention, and 

that only brief, of bituminous material at localities 1 

and 3. Hewett (1913,1914) gave a short account of the 

oil at locality 4. Our data were obtained on brief reconnaissance trips between 1963 and 1968.

Bl
B2 SHORTER CONTRIBUTIONS TO GENERAL GEOLOGY

110°

FIGURE 1. Relief map of northwestern Wyoming showing described localities of hydrocarbon occurrences in thermal areas. 

Indicated are (1) Calcite Springs, (2) Tower Bridge, (3) Rainbow Springs, (4) Sweetwater Mineral Springs, and (5) 

Cedar Mountain.

We are grateful to many people for help on various 

aspects of this study. The following U.S. Geological 

Survey paleontologists studied the fossils: E. B. Leopold identified pollen, K. E. Lohman and G. W. Andrews identified diatoms from the Rainbow Springs 

locality, and J. A. Wolfe identified leaves from the early 

basic breccia. We are especially grateful to M. F. Skinner, of the American Museum of Natural History, for 

comparing a bison skull from one of our localities with 

his reference collection. J. W. Smith, U.S. Bureau of 

Mines, and G. J. Schrayer, Gulf Research and Development Co., provided not only interest and encouragement but many analyses during a period of several 

years. W. E. Haines and A. B. Hubbard, U.S. Bureau 

of Mines, wTere most helpful in supplying both counsel 

and analyses. J. G. Palacas, U.S. Geological Survey, 

studied a sample of oil-impregnated silt from the 

Sweetwater Mineral Springs locality. K. L. Pering, 

Ames Research Center, National Aeronautics and 

Space Administration, collected oil samples and made

laboratory comparisons of the samples with biogenic 

and possible abiogenic oils from other parts of the 

world. Irving Friedman, U.S. Geological Survey, provided twTo carbon isotope analyses. M. L. Jensen, University of Utah, sampled sulfur in the Calcite Springs 

area and made a series of sulfur isotope analyses from 

both his samples and ours.

This study wT as conducted wT ith the cooperation of 

R. S. Houston, Chairman, Department of Geology, University of Wyoming, and D. L. Blackstone, Jr., State 

Geologist of Wyoming.

CHARACTERISTICS AND GEOLOGIC SETTING 

OF THE LOCALITIES

The five described localities lie in an arcuate southeastward- to eastward-trending area 70 miles long (fig. 

1). They are, from northwest to east, TowTer Bridge 

(loc. 2), Calcite Springs (loc. 1), Rainbow Springs 

(loc. 3), Sweetwater Mineral Springs (loc. 4), and 

Cedar Mountain (loc. 5). Characteristics common to
HYDROCARBONS IN THERMAL AREAS, NORTHWESTERN WYOMING B3

most of these localities, in addition to the occurrence of 

hydrocarbons, are the abundance of sulfur and its close 

association with the hydrocarbons, the presence of 

thermal springs and vents (active in four localities, 

recently extinct at loc. 4) , and the presence of volcanic 

rocks that surround and underlie localities 1-4. The 

water in many springs at localities 1 and 3 is boiling, 

but it is cooler at 2, cold at 4, and reportedly 90°F at 5. 

Localities 1, 2, and 4 are in the early basic breccia of 

Hague (1904). At locality 2 is a dark-colored facies of 

volcanic-rich strata equivalent to the lower part of the 

Cathedral Cliffs Formation (H. J. Prostka, oral 

commun., 1969). Locality 3 is in Pleistocene lacustrine 

tuff adjacent to and probably underlain by rhyolite. 

Below the rhyolite, presumably, is early basic breccia. 

Locality 5 is probably in Pennsylvanian or Permian 

sandstone and carbonate rocks. Geologic details are 

given in the description of each locality. The regional 

structural pattern and distribution of prevolcanic rocks 

in areas adjacent to localities 1-4 suggest that Paleozoic 

and Mesozoic sedimentary rocks underlie the volcanics; 

the type of thermal features at localities 1 and 3 suggests that at still greater depth there are bodies of hot 

magma or only partly cooled igneous rocks. The actual 

depths of these sedimentary rocks and igneous material 

have not been determined; they could be hundreds to 

thousands of feet below the surface. The attitude of the 

sedimentary rocks is not known, and geophysical data 

are not definitive as yet. No drilling has been done in 

the vicinity of the localities.

SOURCES OF OIL AND SULFUR

The characteristics of the oil at each locality are given 

in the detailed discussions. Only at localities 1 and 3 

was sufficient oil obtained for even a preliminary interpretation as to source. The gas chromatograms of the 

alkane portion of these two oils (fig. 11) are so different 

that they may well have been derived from unrelated 

sources. The source of oil at locality 1 is unknown. The 

oil at locality 3 appears to have no highly unusual characteristics and may have been derived from underlying 

organic-rich Cretaceous rocks and carried upward along 

conduits by thermal water and steam. On the other 

hand, aided by the available heat, it might have been 

distilled from Pleistocene nonmarine algae at shallow 

depth. This possibility is discussed later.

The sulfur from locality 1 was analyzed in some detail, but the resulting data were not sufficiently definitive to assign it an igneous or bacteriogenic origin. At 

all localities, the sulfur was hydrothermally concentrated.

RELATION OF THERMAL PHENOMENA TO 

EMPLACEMENT OF OIL

Hot water and steam are closely associated with the 

conduits along which oil traveled at localities 1 and 3 

and almost certainly are responsible for the surface and 

near-surface emplacement of the oil. At the other localities, because of floods or tampering by man, conclusive 

evidence of the process of transport and emplacement 

has been obliterated, but it is believed that the process 

was somewhat similar to that at localities 1 and 3. When 

more surface and subsurface information on thermal 

features elsewhere in and near Yellowstone National 

Park (Campbell, 1969) is obtained, an interpretation 

can probably be made concerning the depth at which 

the thermal activity originated, how far the oil was 

transported, and what chemical changes occurred in it 

en route from the source area to the surface.

INDIVIDUAL LOCALITIES 

CALCITE SPRINGS (LOC. 1)

The Calcite Springs emerge near the bottom of Yellowstone Canyon, about 1 mile down the Yellowstone 

River from the Tower Fall area (fig. 2) . The geology 

of the springs area has been described by Howard 

(1937). Alien and Day (1935, p. 495-500) discussed the 

springs and gave the first description of tarry bitumen 

at that locality.

Oil emerges from the early basic breccia, as well as 

from Quaternary deposits. The lower 200 feet of the 

Yellowstone Canyon at this locality is cut in the early 

basic breccia, a sequence of drab dark-green to brown 

mafic tuff, conglomerate, and possibly basalt flows (fig. 

3). These rocks have been extensively altered by thermal 

action to produce the yellow to white canyon walls. The 

age of the early basic breccia is considered to be Eocene 

on the basis of a small flora collected from the breccia 

at the base of Tower Fall and identified by J. A. Wolf e 

(written commun., 1962) as Celastrus inaequalis 

Knowlton, Ficus densifolia Knowlton, and Magnolia 

spectdbilis Knowlton.

The upper 130 feet of rocks on the east wall was 

called "Canyon basalts and associated gravels" by Howard (1937). This sequence consists of lenticular basalt 

flows separated by dark-brown conglomerate made up 

chiefly of basalt and rhyolite pebbles, cobbles, and 

boulders. There are, however, many light-colored highly 

rounded quartzite pebbles and cobbles, similar to those 

in the Pinyon Conglomerate farther south, that were extensively fractured after deposition. The conglomeratic 

units thin rapidly from east to west near Calcite 

Springs; Bumpus Butte (figs. 2, 3) is composed of ba-
B4 SHORTER CONTRIBUTIONS TO GENERAL GEOLOGY

110°20'

3 MILES

FIGURE 2. Location of Calcite Springs (loc. 1) and Tower Bridge (loc. 2). Base from U.S. Geological Survey Tower Junction

quadrangle, 1959.

salt with a thin conglomerate at the base. The relation 

of this conglomerate to the Tower Creek Conglomerate 

(Hague, 1904) near Tower Fall, 1 mile southeast, has 

not been established. The Tower Creek was considered 

to be of Pliocene age on the basis of a horse tooth identified by O. C. Marsh (in Hague, 1904). No other fossils 

have been found in it. An unsuccessful attempt was 

made by Love in 1937 to locate the horse tooth at the 

U.S. National Museum and in the Marsh collection at

Yale University in order to check its identification.

A flat terrace on the west side of the Yellowstone 

River at Calcite Springs (fig. 3, lower right corner) is 

composed of alluvial boulders cemented with white siliceous hot-spring deposits and sulfur and impregnated 

with oil.

The hot springs have been adequately described by 

Alien and Day (1935) ; their data are not repeated here. 

Chemical analyses of the water and identification of
HYDROCARBONS IN THERMAL AREAS, NORTHWESTERN WYOMING B5

FIGURE 3. View west across the Yellowstone River toward Galcite Springs locality. Indicated are highly altered early basic 

breccia (ebb) ; Canyon basalt (cb) of Howard (1937), capping Bumpus Butte at top center; boiling spring (S) ; oil seeps 

(O) ; and lithified tarry residue from an old oil flow (F) 

shown in figure 4. Height of scarp is about 500 feet.

some of the associated minerals are likewise given by 

Alien and Day. Regarding the origin of the water, they 

stated (p. 498) :

The thermal waters are best explained as of mixed origin; 

the high sulphate and free sulphuric acid probably washed down 

the slope in a superficial circulation, the chloride, bicarbonate 

and carbonate brought up from greater depths. In those spring 

waters of this group that show an acid reaction, the infiltration 

of superficial drainage is in excess, while in the alkaline springs 

the carbonate and bicarbonate of the deeper water are more than 

equivalent to the acid of the shallow supply.

The north-south areal extent of oil seeps at this locality has not been determined. The seeps occur for at least 

one-fourth mile along the west side of the river and 

emerge at many elevations between water level and a 

horizon 250 feet up the west side of the canyon (fig. 3). 

No streams of oil flow at present, but they have at 

several times in the moderately recent past. This con377-480 O 70 2

elusion is based on the occurrence of at least 10 lithified 

flows, one of which is shown in figure 4; the oil emerged 

as a fluid, cascaded down the steep slopes, incorporated 

rock debris, then hardened, and finally broke up into 

blocks and cakes of bituminous residue. These flows are 

of different ages. Some are old and gray, whereas others 

are black and fresh appearing and must have been extruded in the last few years. The rapidity of breakup 

and obliteration of these flows was demonstrated by 

comparing photographs of the flow shown in figure 4 

(taken July 16, 1964) with a similar view taken 3 years 

later. During this interval of time, much of the hard 

crust had broken up and had been scattered by water 

and snowslides.

The orifices from which the oil emerges are along 

fractures in soil and rock. Temperatures of vapors 1 

foot inside the orifices range from warm to hot. Several 

of the hottest (fig. 5) that were measured were 93°C, 

but the average was 80°-85°C. The oil is highly fluid, 

has a strong but pleasant petroleum odor, and is light 

brown. It is accompanied by sulfurous gas and steam in 

the hottest vents and by small amounts of water in the 

cooler ones. The conduits and fractures are invariably 

lined with layers of beautiful euhedral yellow sulfur 

crystals, some as much as 2 inches long. Many crystals 

contain globules of oil and are generally oil stained. 

Some fractures, such as the one shown in figure 5, widened gradually during a considerable period of time; 

and as they widened successive layers of sulfur crystals 

with interstitial hydrocarbons were deposited.

After the oil reaches the surface in the active vents, 

it mixes with soil, rock, and dead vegetation to form 

spongy, bulbous, flexible masses. These deposits, resulting from the slow extrusion of oil, are different from 

the lithified flows, which were apparently emplaced 

much more rapidly.

The Calcite Springs, so named because of the nearby 

masses of milky-white calcite crystals, are directly adjacent to the oil seeps near river level. Barite crystals are 

associated with the calcite. In addition, there are deposits as much as 50 feet thick (fig. 6) of finely crystalline calcite interlayered with spongy, fibrous mats of 

gypsum. A geochemical and mineralogical study of 

these deposits would contribute much to an understanding of the nature of the underlying rocks, including those from and through which the oil, sulfur, and 

thermal water came. Elemental sulfur is invariably 

associated with the oil but it is not known if this sulfur 

and that in the gypsum and barite had a common origin.

Alien and Day's comments (1935, p. 496) regarding 

the oil seeps are very perceptive:

Breaking into fumaroles with the pick, one finds wellcrystallized masses of it [sulfur], mixed with bitumen of tarry
B6 SHORTER CONTRIBUTIONS TO GENERAL GEOLOGY

FIGURE 4. View west at part of Oalcite Springs locality where oil that emerged from the early basic breccia at point A flowed 

downsiope and then was lithified into a tarry crust. Dashed line indicates margin of flow. For general location see figure 3. 

Ledge of crystalline sulfur is at S. Temperature of active oil and sulfur vents is 80°-85°C. Oil sample PC65-3 is from seep 

at point A, and PC65-4 is from lithified flow.
HYDROCARBONS IN THERMAL AREAS, NORTHWESTERN WYOMING B7

FIGURE 5. One of the hottest (93°C at point of hammer) sulfur and oil vents at Calcite Springs. 

Layered deposits on both sides of dark fissure are oil-saturated crystalline sulfur, and fissure 

is filled with brown fluid oil.

appearance and odor. On the bench above the river's edge, 

sinuous trails, resembling the marks of burrowing moles, follow 

the lines of cracks where the same products have been deposited. 

No evidence regarding the origin of this tarry substance in the 

fumaroles is at hand. A unique occurrence in the Yellowstone 

Park, it seems to be best explained as a distillate from organic 

matter in buried sediments.

No analyses of the oil were made by Alien and Day. 

Therefore, as a part of the present study, samples of 

oil-saturated silt and sand were collected from vents 

between the river level and the highest occurrences of 

such material, 250 feet above the river (fig. 3). A representative sample (sample PC65-3) of oil from one of 

the hottest vents about 100 feet above the river contained 

(A. B. Hubbard, U.S. Bur. Mines, written commun., 

1965) 15.5 percent benzene-soluble oil and 64.1 percent 

free sulfur (because the oil and free sulfur are both 

benzene soluble and difficult to separate, the figures may 

not be exactly correct) . The sample also contained 20.1 

percent benzene-insoluble matter. Total carbon analysis of this benzene-insoluble residue showed that it contained 13.62 percent organic carbon (J. W. Smith, 

written commun., 1965). Concerning this insoluble 

residue Smith commented :

Presence of this amount of organic carbon not soluble in 

benzene is a very surprising feature of your samples. While 

many petroleums carry heavy asphalts, the asphalts are almost 

entirely benzene-soluble. The insoluble organic carbon in the 

Yellowstone samples may well be a parent material for the 

oil, carried along in the oil by the hot water.

It is interesting to compare the composition of the 

oil with that of the lithified flow shown in figure 4. 

The lithified material (sample PC65-4) contained only 

a trace of benzene-soluble oil (detected by ultraviolet 

fluorescence and infrared spectroscopy) , 59.6 percent 

free sulfur, and 40.4 percent benzene-insoluble residue 

(A. B. Hubbard, written commun., 1965). This residue 

contained 1.42 percent organic carbon (weight percent; J. W. Smith, written commun., 1965).
B8

FIGURE 6. View northeast across the Yellowstone Biver at Calcite Springs. Indicated are tilted light-colored interbedded 

calcite and gypsum (C), early basic breccia (ebb), and partly solidified dark-colored oil flow (O) in center and left 

foreground that comes up through the breccia. Shovel (S) at bottom indicates scale.

M. L. Jensen, University of Utah, made sulfur isotope 

studies of water and sulfur from the Calcite Springs 

area, with results as follows (written commun., 1967) :

Sample 5 SM per mil

_______ ... _____ 1.9 ..

. - _- - 1.9

+.3 

+1.1

+4.7

+.7 

+3.0

+7.8

+4.7 

+5.4

With reference to these data, Jensen commented:

This spread in values is a little greater than I would like to 

see for undoubted magmatic hydrothermal sulfur. On the other 

hand, it is not quite as broad as I would like to see to be diagnostic of a 'bacteriogenic origin. Even considering that the S'S34 

values are near zero per mil does not enhance the magmatic 

hydrothermal origin of the sulfur, as a bacteriogenic origin would 

involve the reduction of SO4= to H2S, and exothermic oxidation 

of HaS to S° with the SO= being typically enriched in S34 with a 

SS34 value of +20 with ±10 per mil. Such reduction could readily 

provide the SS34 values obtained, suggesting biogenic sulfur enriched to a variable content in S32 in comparison to the S32 content 

of the SO= that was reduced. A magmiatic hydrothermal origin

would more closely average zero per mil and should exhibit a 

more narrow spread in 8 S34 values than those obtained. In conclusion, therefore, with a strong assist from the geologic occurrence, 

I favor the bacteriogenic origin of the sulfur.

K. L. Pering, research chemist for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, sampled oil seeps 

throughout the 250 feet of vertical section in which they 

occur. She commented on the nature of the oil as follows 

(written commun., 1968) :

A gas chromatogram of the alkanes in the bitumen from Calcite 

Springs [fig. 11J3, this report] is characterized by a largely 

unresolved hump, which suggests the presence of an unresolvable 

mixture of alkane isomers. Individual peaks on the hump may 

be normal alkanes. Because of the abundance of free sulfur in 

the oil sample, the amount of alkanes was difficult to estimate 

but a rough guess is that less than 1 percent is present.

A comparison of the gas chromatogram of this oil 

with that of oil from Rainbow Springs (loc. 3, fig. 1L4) 

is given in the discussion of the latter locality. It is 

worth noting that of the two oil samples on which gas 

chromatograms were run, the Calcite Springs oil prob-
HYDROCARBONS IN THERMAL AREAS, NORTHWESTERN WYOMING B9

ably contains less than 1 percent alkanes, whereas the 

Rainbow Springs oil contains about 99 percent.

No data are available as to the composition, age, 

depth, and attitude of the underlying rocks that might 

be supplying the oil and sulfur but, as mentioned in the 

first part of this report, some guesses probably can be 

made when regional tectonic, stratigraphic, and structural studies currently in progress in Yellowstone National Park are completed (Campbell, 1969). The reason 

for the sporadic flows of oil down the canyon slope is 

not known. The flows may be related to earthquake 

activity that caused rapid extrusion of oil that had accumulated underground. The unique occurrence of 

crystalline calcite and barite and the volume and source 

of the associated sulfur and gypsum warrant further 

investigation.

TOWER BRIDGE (LOC. 2)

The Tower Bridge oil seeps (fig. 1, loc. 2; fig. 2) are 

adjacent to the westernmost pylon of the new Tower 

Bridge across the Yellowstone River, about half a mile 

northeast of Tower Junction, Yellowstone National 

Park. No oil was known in this area prior to 1962. During January 1962, a construction company dug a pit 

about 30 feet deep and 20 feet square in which to put 

the base of the westernmost pylon of the bridge. The 

pit was entirely in a dark-colored f acies of volcanic-rich 

strata equivalent to the lower part of the Cathedral 

Cliffs Formation (H. J. Prostka, oral commun., 1969). 

This sequence had previously been mapped as the early 

basic breccia by Hague (1904). It consists of dark-green 

to dark-brown coarse-grained mafic tuff, conglomerate, 

and basaltic breccia with a few partings of plastic gray 

claystone. The claystone was checked for pollen but 

proved to be barren. The rock has been deeply altered 

by hydrothermal action so that most outcrops appear 

white, yellow, and light green. Near the bottom of this 

pit, light-brown translucent oil seeped out and dribbled 

down the walls. At first it was thought that this was 

oil from construction machinery used in digging the 

pit, but excavation back along the conduits showed that 

the oil actually came from bedrock. The matrix of the 

rock is soft and porous because of the extensive 

alteration.

A few small samples of the oil-stained claystone and 

tuff were collected before the pylon was built and the 

excavation filled. Unfortunately, however, no oil sample 

was obtained, and no photographs were taken of the 

actual seeps. The rock samples were too small for adequate oil analysis, so during the following summer a 

bulk sample of petroliferous rock fragments that had 

been thrown out of the excavation was collected and 

analyzed for hydrocarbons. J. W. Smith (written commun., 1963) extracted it for approximately 32 hours 

using a Soxhlet extractor that had a 60- by 180-mm 

thimble, with benzene solvent, and recovered 0.24 percent benzene-soluble hydrocarbon and 0.10 percent 

sulfur.

The gray claystone, taken from the original pit while 

it was open and checked for pollen (barren), seemed 

unusually heavy, so a spectrographic analysis was run. 

The only anomalously high amount of any heavy metal 

was 0.2 percent molybdenum. Because the rock was 

slightly petroliferous, carbon and sulfur analyses were 

made (I. C. Frost, written commun., 1963), with the 

following results: 0.29 percent total carbon and 0.02 percent mineral carbon (total carbon determined by induction furnace and mineral carbon determined gasometrically) ; total sulfur is 1.1 percent (determined by 

pyrometric-titration method) .

There is no present thermal activity in or adjacent 

to the pylon pit, although the intense alteration of the 

volcanic-rich strata indicates past activity. On the east 

bank of the Yellowstone River, on the upstream side 

of the bridge, however, active thermal vents are present. 

These emit lethal amounts of gas, probably some type of 

sulfur gas. The most specific record of this gas occurrence is given in a National Park Service accident report. According to W. A. Whitmore (written commun., 

1939), a test pit 26 feet deep was dug in 1939 in connection with construction of a highway bridge over the 

Yellowstone River at the site of the present bridge. Gas 

with a slightly sulfurous odor was encountered. One 

morning, shortly after the pit was dug, several men in 

it were overcome by gas in a matter of minutes, and 

one of them died shortly thereafter. A second pit, 10 

feet from this one and dug to a depth of 47 feet, encountered only small amounts of sulfurous gas. No gas 

was noted in a third pit, which was on the west side of 

the river. No hydrocarbons Were noted in any of these 

pits, but they could easily have been overlooked, as 

were those in the 1962 excavations.

The original source of the oil is not known. Precambrian granite along the southwest margin of the Beartooth Mountains is exposed 2,800 feet northeast of 

Tower Bridge and may have been thrust southwestward over Paleozoic and Mesozoic rocks prior to 

deposition of the volcanic-rich strata. Farther northwest, Brown (1961) mapped the Gardiner and Everts 

thrust faults along the southwest margin of the Beartooth Mountains. Both faults disappear southeastward 

beneath igneous and pyroclastic rocks, so their extent in 

that direction is not known. The oil might be migrating 

along these or other buried faults and reaching the surface at this locality because of the porosity and permeability of the highly altered volcanic-rich strata.
BIO SHORTER CONTRIBUTIONS TO GENERAL GEOLOGY

RAINBOW SPRINGS (LOC. 3)

Rainbow Springs were named by Everett (Ben) Arnold, an oldtime ranger in Yellowstone National Park 

(Lee Coleman, written commun., 1964). The name appeared for the first time on the 1959 Tower Junction 

15-minute topographic quadrangle map (fig. 7). This 

descriptive name could have been derived from the rainbows of oil on the hot-water pools and streams or from

the unusually brightly colored algae in the thermal area. 

Of all the localities, this one contains the most oil, is 

the most fossiliferous, and is the least accessible.

The only previous mention of oil in this area was by 

Alien and Day (1935, p. 356-357), and it was based 

on notes by Allyn Hanks, a park ranger. Alien and Day 

stated: "A short distance down stream from the area 

described is another 30 by 50 yards in size, with a brown

110° 15'

44 "45'

3 MILES 

J

FIGUBE 7. Map of Rainbow Springs area (loc. 3). Indicated are some of the Pleistocene faults and two 

Pleistocene sedimentary sequences. Oil seeps emerge from the claystone sequence (Qc, stippled area), 

which is overlain by a sand (Qs). Position of faults is taken from mapping by Love (1961) ; U, 

upthrown block; D, downthrown block; dotted where concealed. Base from U.S. Geological Survey 

Canyon Village, Tower Junction, Abiathar Peak, and Pelican Cone quadrangles, 1959.
HYDROCARBONS IN THERMAL AREAS, NORTHWESTERN WYOMING Bll

oily deposit smelling of petroleum." The locality is 

designated "Deep Creek Springs (Eastern Group)." In 

order to determine if there was actually a set of petroliferous springs on Deep Creek or if this described locality was Rainbow Springs on Wrong Creek, which flows 

into Shallow Creek rather than into Deep Creek, we sent 

the 1959 topographic maps and aerial photographs of 

the area to Allyn Hanks. After examining them, he 

stated (written commun., 1964) that his observations 

that were published by Alien and Day were probably 

of Rainbow Springs. The confusion of drainages is 

understandable, because the stream pattern is unusually 

complex as a result of Pleistocene faulting (fig. 7), and 

the 1884-85 topographic map of this part of the Canyon 

quadrangle, which was the only map available at the 

time of Hanks' examination, contained extensive errors, 

not only in the positions and relations of the streams, 

but also in the direction of their flow.

Two widespread sequences of Pleistocene strata are 

present in the Rainbow Springs area, a blue-gray claystone and mudstone at least 75 feet thick and an overlying pebbly sandstone and sand at least 125 feet thick. 

These are discussed in some detail because of the bearing of stratigraphy and environment of deposition on 

the interpretation of the possible Pleistocene origin of 

the oil. The lower sequence, from which the oil seeps 

emerge, is exposed only in the bottom part of the valley 

of Wrong Creek near Rainbow Springs but is more 

widespread in areas to the south and southeast. The 

claystone and mudstone is bright to dull blue gray, soft 

to hard, blocky, and noncalcareous; it is locally interbedded with gray fine- to medium-grained poorly cemented volcanic sandstone containing abundant clear 

glass shards, black magnetite grains, and larger clear 

angular quartz and feldspar grains. Much of the rock is 

peppered with tiny black specks that have not been identified. Irregularly distributed angular grains of clear 

quartz and feldspar are characteristic of the claystone 

as well as the sandstone. The mudstone has a persistent 

acrid odor. Analysis of a representative sample (lab. No. 

D110908) showed 76 ppm (parts per million) arsenic, 

0.5 ppm selenium, 0.10 percent fluorine, and 1.1 percent 

sulfur (determined by A. J. Bartel, G. T. Burrow, W. D. 

Goss, and I. C. Frost, respectively, written commun., 

1963).

Spectrographic analyses show that this claystone and 

mudstone sequence contains less iron, calcium, manganese, strontium, and nickel than the other lacustrine 

Pleistocene sequences that we have studied in the area 

north of Yellowstone Lake.

The claystone and mudstone sequence in adjacent localities laps across Tertiary and possibly Quaternary 

igneous and pyrolcastic rocks and is unconformably

overlain by the sandstone and sand sequence and in 

places by lithified conglomeratic hot-spring deposits 

(fig. 8) or by glacial debris.

The Pleistocene age of the claystone and mudstone 

sequence is based on fossil diatoms and pollen. The 

following diatoms were identified from a sample in the 

lower part of a section 6,500 feet upstream from the main 

part of Rainbow Springs (U.S.G.S. diatom loc. 5589; 

identified by K. E. Lohman and G. W. Andrews, written 

commun., 1966) . Occurrence is indicated by R, rare, and 

F, frequent:

Cyclotella, comta (Ehrenberg) Kiitzing__ 

cf. C. operculata (Agardh) Kiitzing.

sp

Helosiracf. M. italica (Ehrenberg) Kiitzing_

F 

F 

F 

F 

R 

R 

F 

F 

F

Rhopalodia ffibba (Ehrenberg) O. Miiller_______________

Stauroneis anceps Ehrenberg__________________

Stephanodiscus astraea (Ehrenberg) Grunow_______.

astraea var. minutula (Kiitzing) Grunow________

Concerning this assemblage, as well as others from 

Pleistocene lacustrine strata in the general area, they 

commented, "The environment in which these diatoms 

lived was probably a cool to cold, fairly shallow, clear 

lake, very near neutral, as the rare species usually preferring slightly acid water are balanced by those usually 

preferring slightly alkaline water, and many are indicative of water of low mineral content."

Pollen assemblages from oil-saturated claystone from 

the Rainbow Springs locality consist of the following 

forms (identified by E. B. Leopold, written commun.,

FIGURE 8. Ledge of Pleistocene brown oil-stained conglomerate; 

darker appearing unvegetated spots are active oil seeps. View 

is of north bank of Wrong Creek, east of bison skull site at 

Rainbow Springs locality. Base of ledge marks contact with 

blue-gray claystone sequence which yielded pollen collection 

D3366.
B12 SHORTER CONTRIBUTIONS TO GENERAL GEOLOGY

1964, 1966). Collection D3310 is from the Kainbow 

Springs, and collection D3366 is from an area one-fourth 

mile upstream from Rainbow Springs and stratigraphically a few feet higher.

Pinus-- - _

Artemisia. _ _ _

Picea

Ephedra and Ephedrat _ .

Botryococcus _ __ _

Quercusl _ _

Juniperus _ _ _

cf. Acer

Eriogonum _ _ _ . Polygonum cf . P. bistortoides

Sarcobatus vermiculatus _ _

Gramineae__ _ _ _ _

Compositae_ _______

Cyperaceae __ _ _ . Dicots, undet _ _ _ _

Chenopodiaceae, undet _ _ .

Pollen

collection

DSS10

_ _ 42

.___ _ _ 35

_ _____ 2

1

. _ _ _ 1

__ _ _ _ 1

______ _ 1

1

_ _ _ _ 1

__ _ _ _ 2

_ __ _ 1

___ __ _ 10

.____ _ 3

Pollen

collection

DSS66

57

12

12

1

7

1

1

1

1

2

2

1

Total number of grains. 101

These collections represent pollen rains that are 

nearly identical with modern pollen accumulations present in lakes of this general area today.

The sandstone and sand sequence is about 125 feet 

thick. The basal bed is a hard rounded pebble conglomerate. It is overlain by sandstone that is sufficiently 

lithified to form a weak ledge about 15 feet thick. The 

remainder of the sequence is crudely stratified uncemented coarse- to fine-grained sand; much of it consists 

of clear shards and white pumice fragments. Black 

obsidian shards, clear angular quartz and feldspar 

grains, and some rounded granules of pink rhyolite are 

present. These soft strata support a dense growth of 

trees, and exposures are rare. The sequence extends westward along both sides of Wrong Creek at elevations 

beginning just above the thermal vents. No fossils were 

found in it.

Along the bottom of Wrong Creek within the thermal 

area, there are conspicuous bare to grassy outcrops of 

hard rusty-brown conglomerate cemented with siliceous 

hot-spring deposits (fig. 8). Some white to rusty-brown 

hot-spring deposits contain little or no conglomerate. 

These outcrops are exposed in weak ledges along the 

banks of Wrong Creek, which in Holocene time cut 

through them into the underlying claystone. Partly 

rotted and partly silicified logs are embedded at various 

horizons in the conglomerate and in the hot-spring deposits. If the logs are within the range of carbon-14 

dating methods, analyses could provide a precise age 

for the conglomerate besides data on the rate of accumulation of these deposits.

In connection with an earlier study (Love, 1961), 

Quaternary faults were mapped in this area, and these 

are shown in figure 7. Because of dense timber, landslides, and poor exposures, the traces of less conspicuous 

faults were determined in part by low-level helicopter 

traverses at times when light was very oblique. Under 

these conditions, lines that are related to drainage and 

topographic anomalies and thermal features became 

visible in unconsolidated debris. Several faults trend 

into the Kainbow Springs area, but exposures are such 

that we were not able to determine if the thermal conduits are along faults.

The ground throughout the thermal area is warm. 

Many springs boil violently, although the actual volume 

of water that enters Wrong Creek from the north is not 

large. On the south side, however, one thermal complex 

emits about 1 cubic foot (about TI/£ gallons) of hot 

water per second. Some springs have built siliceous 

cones as much as 5 feet high. Others, not quite as hot, 

are rimmed with white siliceous deposits and harbor 

algae which are red, pink, brilliant green, and inky 

black. Trees that have fallen into some pools are partly 

silicified, indicating the abundance of silica in the water 

and the rapidity of petrifaction. A few springs contain 

blue-black iron sulfide. Sulfur is not as abundant as at 

Calcite Springs, but some pools and rivulets have long 

white streamers of sulfur, and the sulfurous odor is 

moderately strong. More sulfur is present on the south 

side of the creek than on the north. Hissing steam vents 

are present, and gas bubbles up violently in some poolsMost of the gas that was tested was nonflammable, but 

a few seeps ignited explosively.

Oil seeps are numerous on the north side of Wrong 

Creek from Rainbow Springs upstream for at least 

three-eighths of a mile. No attempt was made to determine the maximum areal distribution of the seeps, and 

they may be considerably more widespread. None was 

observed on the south side of Wrong Creek; there, the 

color of the brown deposits that superficially resemble 

oil seeps was caused by iron staining.

Some seeps are entirely oil (figs. 8, 9), whereas others 

are a combination of oil and warm-to-boiling water. 

Rainbows of oil are conspicuous, streaming along the 

surface of water that moves out of the more aqueous 

seeps.

A few feet west of the oil seep shown in figure 8 is 

an oil-impregnated warm-water swamp in which both 

ancient and modern bison have mired and died. While 

exploring this swamp, we excavated an unusual oilsoaked bison skull that had long, slender, back-swept 

horns with a greater spread than that of modern bison 

in the region. This skull was sent to Morris F. Skinner, 

of the American Museum of Natural History, who has
HYDROCARBONS IN THERMAL AREAS, NORTHWESTERN WYOMING B13

FIGURE 9. View northeast showing western part of Rainbow Springs locality. In foreground, unvegetated spot is dark-brown 

oil-saturated siliceous hot^spring deposit (site of oil sample SBR63-359X). Hole is mold of partly silicified tree that was 

conduit for the oil. In grass at upper left is swamp that yielded Bison skull (site of oil-saturated sand and silt sample 

SBR63-149X, highly fluid oil sample for Rainbow Springs gas chromatogram in fig. 11, and dark oil sample analyzed for 

carbon by living Friedman). Steam vents are at upper right.

studied in detail the fossil bison of North America 

(Skinner and Kaisen, 194/T). He made comparative 

measurements of various parts of the skull and concluded that it was most like Bison (B.) bison athabascae (the Mountain bison). This form is still living 

in northern Canada but had a prehistoric range as far 

south as Colorado. This skull is of special interest to 

our study because its presence near the surface indicates 

that the water and oil level in this swamp has changed 

little since prehistoric time.

As a result of this discovery, we used an iron bar, 

4 feet long and one-half inch in diameter, to probe 

the swamp for bones of other animals. During the 

process of probing, we found several places in the 

swamp where explosively flammable gas bubbled up 

after the iron bar was withdrawn. Following the emergence of this gas, a cream-colored waxy substance with

the consistency of soft butter emerged on the surface 

of the warm water. This was collected immediately, 

and after 2 days, even in 50°F temperature, it changed 

to a dark-reddish-brown transparent highly fluid oil. 

In other parts of the swamp, a light-amber-colored 

transparent oil (fig. 10) with a strong but pleasant 

petroliferous odor accumulated on the surface of pools 

of water; at 70°F it also was highly fluid, but at lower 

temperatures it congealed.

Two types of samples were studied: oil-saturated 

sand and silt, and fluid oil. Table 1 (G. J. Schrayer, 

Gulf Research and Development Co., written commun., 

1965) presents data on representative samples of oilsaturated sand and silt from several parts of the Rainbow Springs locality. These samples, collected from 

within 6 inches of the weathered outcrop surface, were 

brown and had a strong petroleum odor. J. W. Smith
B14 SHORTER CONTRIBUTIONS TO GENERAL GEOLOGY

FIGURE 10. Untreated transparent amber-colored oil and associated water (hot at time of collection) from Rainbow 

Springs swamp thalt yields Bison skull.

(written commun., 1964) analyzed benzene extracts of 

two of these samples with the following results:

Sample

SBR6S-366X

(oil-impregnated (oil-impregnated 

sand) sand)

Extract, weight percent rock _______ 4. 8 8. 6

Nitrogen, weight percent extract__ .03 .03 

Sulfur, weight percent extract. _____ .16 .16

Carbon residue, weight percent

extract_________ __________ .2 1. 2

Nitrogen to carbon residue ratio____ . 15 . 025

TABLE 1. Composition of oil, in weight percent, from seeps at 

Rainbow Springs locality,Yellowstone National Park,Wyo.

(Material analyzed is benzene-soluble extract from oil-saturated sands and silt. Sample 

SBR63-149X, midway between sites of figs. 8 and 9; sample SBR63-364X, locality 

shown in fig. 9; sample SBR63-366X, locality shown in fig. 8. Analyses by G. J. 

Schrayer]

Sample

SBR63- SBR63- SBR63- 

149X 364X 366X

Gross composition of crude oil:

Volatile hydrocarbons _ .. . .. .. ___ ._ _. __

Asphaltenes. ... __ __ . ... __ ._ . .

Maltenes (Asphaltene-free, hexane-soluble nonvolatile residue) _ . __ . ___ ___ _.

Gross composition of maltenes:

Saturated hydrocarbons . _ .. _ __ _ ....

Aromatic hydrocarbons ____ . .. __ ....

Nonhydrocarbons (resins) . . . __ __ ...

Group composition of saturated hydrocarbons:

Alkanes... _ . _ . __ ... __ ___ _ .. ...

Noncondensed cycloalkanes _ .. __ ___ __

Condensed cycloalkanes __ .. __ ,. __ . ...

Group composition of aromatic hydrocarbons:

Substituted benzenes ______ _ . . _ -..-..-

Substituted naphthalenes ______ ___ .--.. -

Acenaphthylenes. __ _ . . _... _. _ ... .

Indanes- .. __ ... .. .. ._ ... _ __ . . .

Acenaphthenes.. _ . . _ _ ..-. _ .. ___ ...

Pyrenes.-.--- . _ __ __ _ _ ____ _ - _

Dinaphthenobenzenes... _ _ ___ ___ .-_.-.

Phenanthrenes and (or) anthracenes .. _ .. .

Chrysenes. ___ _ . .. ___ _ ... _ .. ...

Distribution of cycloalkanes:

Monocyclic...... . .........-- -------.. - . 

Bicyclic ________ __ ___ - - 

Tricyclic--.... ___ _ ____ _ - __ _ 

Tetracyclic _ _________ .. ..... ... . 

Pentacyclic ____ . .. ______ 

Hexacyclic _____ ______ __ . _ 

8.4

0

91.6

84.3

10.8

3.9

75.2

17.0

7.7

39.0

13.0

11.4

6.9

10.3

4.0

8.2

3.8

2.0

68.7

16.0

6.6

4.9

2.0

2.0

16.5

0

83.5

79.1

15.3

5.6

68.7

27.7

13.5

38.0

13.0

11.6

7.2

10.3

3.9

9.6

3.6

2.1

67.2

17.0

7.5

5.0

2.0

0.7

22.1

0

77.9

73.1

20.3

5.8

56.9

28.5

14.5

32.0

13.0

14.5

7.3

11.7

4.5

10.3

4.0

2.1

66.2

16.0

7.7

5.5

2.9

1.0

Two samples of fluid oil were collected from the locality of figure 9; one was a split of that shown in figure 

10, from the surface of pools of water, and the other 

was a darker, more highly fluid oil, described earlier, 

from a probe hole. Preliminary examination of these 

fluid oil samples showed that they were not appreciably 

different from the oil in the nearby sand and silt (table 

1; G. J. Schrayer, oral commun., 1968).

A gas chromatogram of the alkanes extracted from 

the light-amber-colored oil shown in figure 10 was made 

by K. L. Pering and is reproduced as part of figure 11. 

She commented on the nature of this oil sample as follows (written commun., 1968) :

Preliminary examination of a gas chromatogram of the alkanes from the Rainbow Springs oil [fig. 11 A] shows that it consists almost entirely of saturated, acyclic alkanes. Normal 

alkanes predominate, and peaks with the retention time of the 

isoprenoids, pristane and phytane, are evident. These alkanes 

exhibit a distribution seen in many sediment alkanes. Lack of. 

major alkane components below nCM suggest a possible loss of 

volatile constituents.

The disparity between the gas chromatographic distribution 

of alkane mixtures from Calcite Springs and Rainbow Springs 

[figs. 11A, .B] suggests either that they came from two different 

sources, or that one or both represent altered fractions of the 

same oil.

Figure 12, reproduced from figure 2 of Ponnamperuma and Pering (1967), is included for the purpose 

of comparing the gas chromatograms of oil from Calcite Springs and Rainbow Springs (fig. 11) with those 

of a normal marine shale, the Posidonian (Jurassic)
HYDROCARBONS IN THERMAL AREAS, NORTHWESTERN WYOMING B15

ll

100

A. RAINBOW SPRINGS

100

B. CALCITE SPRINGS

TEMPERATURE

I

300 

PROGRAM (2° PER MINUTE), IN °C

FIGURE 11. Gas chromatograms of the alkanes in unprocessed oils. A, Rainbow Springs; B, Calcite 

Springs. 50-f t Micropak SE-30 column; 2°C per min ; 

Aerograph 660; flow rate 6 ml per min. Data by 

courtesy of K. L. Pering, National Aeronautics and 

Space Administration.

of Europe, and a nonhydrothermal deposit, the Trinidad Lake asphalt. On the basis of similarities between 

these two sets of gas chromatograms, it w^ould be easy 

to reach conclusions that might be invalidated when 

suites of gas chromatograms are made of many samples 

from various parts of the Calcite Springs and Rainbow 

Springs areas. Therefore, the ones presented here are 

meaningful only in the sense that they call attention 

to a line of investigation that may yield significant 

data.

As mentioned earlier, the contrast in alkane content 

of the t\vo oil samples on \vhich gas chromatograms w^ere 

run is very striking (about 99 percent alkane in the

-nCn position

r

iLJ

o

C/5

1

POSIDONIAN M/

L I/>

100° C

n TRINIDAD LAKE ASPHALT

I 

100° C

nC17 positioi

FIGURE 12. Comparison of the gas chromatogram of the aliphatic hydrocarbons extracted from Posidonian marine 

shale with that of the aliphatic hydrocarbons extracted 

from Trinidad Lake asphalt. Temperature progression 2°C 

per min ; 12 ft by % in., 3 percent SB-30 column ; Aerograph 660. (From Ponnamperuma and Pering, 1967, flg. 2.)

Rainbo\v Springs oil and less than 1 percent alkane in 

the Calcite Springs oil). More analyses are needed to 

confirm this difference and, once confirmed, to determine its significance.

Carbon samples from a light-colored highly fluid 

oil (fig. 10) skimmed off the surface of a spring and 

from a dark-colored even more fluid oil from a probe 

hole were analyzed by Irving Friedman (written commun., 1968), with results as follows:

Oil sample

Deuterium/

C13 Hydrogen 

per ma PDB i percent SMOW'

Light.. -28.9

-26.4

-18.6

-19.5

1 The carbon analyses are given in terms of the PDB standard. PDB is a Cretaceous 

belemnite, Belemnitella americana, from the Peedee Formation of South Carolina 

(Craig, 1957, p. 135). A value of 28.9 per mil indicates that the sample contains 

2.89 percent less C13 than does the standard belemnite.

2 The deuterium results are given relative to Standard Mean Ocean Water (SMOW), 

a standard water whose isotopic composition is close to that of mean ocean water. A 

value of 18.6 percent SMOW indicates that the sample has 18.6 percent less deuterium 

than does SMOW (Craig, 1961).

The carbon data are suggestive but not definitive; 

they suggest that the oil at Rainbow Springs probably 

is of marine origin, but there is, nevertheless, a small 

possibility that it is of fresh-water origin.

Examination of the dark-colored highly fluid oil sample by infrared spectroscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance show^s it to have a very high paraffin content with 

only 1.5 ±0.5 percent aromatics. The ratio of CH3 to 

CH2 is 0.7. Content of even the simplest cycloalkanes is 

low. The oil w^as already extensively refined before it 

reached the near-surface probe hole, for it contains a 

minimum of unsaturates, nitrogen, sulfur, and oxygen 

(J. W. Smith, written commun., 1965).

Oil in Pleistocene and Holocene sediments is known 

in a few places in the Rocky Mountain region, but is 

commonly believed to have migrated into these young 

strata from older, buried petroliferous rocks. New 

studies of modern sediments (Swanson and others, 

1968) and algal communities (Parker and Leo, 1965; 

Leo and Parker, 1966), however, indicate that under 

certain conditions, such as shallow-\vater and nearshore environments favorable to abundant growth of 

plants of various types, significant local accumulations 

of bitumen can and do occur.

The oil-secreting alga, Botryococcus, was identified, 

though it is not abundant, in the claystone and mudstone sequence at several localities in the Rainbow 

Springs area. (See pollen list, p. B12.) Greater concentrations of plant material may be present at depth. 

The diatoms do not indicate an unusually saline environment of deposition for these strata, but it is not 

known if such an environment is necessary for accumulation of organic material that could yield oil in the 

amount and of the type observed at Rainbow Springs. 

As far as is known no\v, it is possible for oil to have
B16 SHORTER CONTRIBUTIONS TO GENERAL GEOLOGY

been distilled, with the help of thermal conditions, from 

dead algae and other plant debris at shallow depths, 

perhaps less than 100-200 feet, in the Eainbow Springs 

area. A more detailed investigation of this possibility 

should be made.

An alternate interpretation of origin is just as likely. 

The PDB and SMOW data suggest a marine origin, 

and the sulfur and nitrogen contents and ratio of nitrogen to Kamsbottom carbon residue indicate post-Jurassic age. If these data are indicative, the hydrocarbons 

are probably Cretaceous and therefore must have come 

up from buried Cretaceous rocks at some unknown 

depth.

SWEETWATER MINERAL SPRINGS (LOC. 4)

The Sweetwater Mineral Springs (fig. 1, loc. 4; fig. 

13) are located on Sweetwater Creek, about 3.5 miles 

north of the North Fork of the Shoshone River and 18 

miles east of Yellowstone National Park.

The general geology of the region was described by 

Hague (1899). Later, Hewett (1914) studied sulfur 

deposits adjacent to the springs and mentioned the occurrence of oil as an item of special interest (1913). 

There are no subsequent publications describing the

area.

The rock exposed at the surface is the early basic 

breccia of Eocene age. It is a brown mafic volcanic conglomerate and agglomerate several thousand feet thick 

and nearly horizontal in position. One of the conspicuous features of this sequence at this locality is the 

presence of angular masses, as much as 20 feet in 

diameter, of light-colored dolomite and limestone of 

Paleozoic age.

The mineral springs emerge an estimated 500 feet 

above the base of the volcanic rocks, a few hundred feet 

upstream (north) from the hydrocarbon seeps, between 

the upper and lower sulfur deposits described by Hewett 

(1914). The water in these springs differs from that

109°30' 109° 15'

FIGURE 13. Locations of Sweetwater Mineral Spring's (loc. 4) and Cedar Mountain (loc. 5). Base from U.S. Geological Survey

Cody, 1: 250,000, 1955-62.
HYDROCARBONS IN THERMAL AREAS, NORTHWESTERN WYOMING B17

at the localities previously discussed, because it is cold. 

The presence at and near the present stream level, however, of bedded sulfur, siliceous sinter, travertine, and 

gas vents suggests that this is a thermal area that has 

recently cooled. Some latent heat apparently remains in 

the rocks, for in winter the snow melts quickly from 

some spots near the sulfur deposits but accumulates elsewhere (Mel Stonehouse, owner, in 1968, of the Sweetwater Minerals Springs Eesort, oral commun., 1968).

The water is so highly charged with iron that the 

channelways are lined with a bright limonite yellow 

iron precipitate. The surface of water in quiet pools and 

seeps has a thick iridescent coating of iron which, unlike oil, breaks up into chunks when a twig is dragged 

through it. At one time, because of its reported curative attributes, the water was bottled and sold. In 

recent years, the springs have become so choked with alluvial debris that they flow only a few tens of gallons 

per day. Analysis of the water by the U.S. Geological 

Survey (O. J. Feist, Jr., analyst, 1968) is as follows:

Chemical components

Cations: 

SiO2- 

Fe 

Ca...

Mg._ 

Sr...

Na_.

Milligrams 

per liter 

27

.31 

45 

12

.48 

16 

LI

 per liter

Li.

TotalAnions: 

HCO3_. 

C03 . 

SO4 .-~ 

Cl 

N03 

PO4 -

97

0

131

1.3

.3 

.5 

.00

TotaL

2.25 

.99 

.01 

.70 

.03 

.00

1.59

.00

2.73

.04

.02

.01

4.39

Physical characteristics and computed values 

Dissolved solids:

Residues on evaporation 

at 180° C .. ......................milligrams per liter.. 340

Calculated....._______________ milligrams per liter.. 283

Hardness as CaCOs:

Total . ...__....______.milligrams per liter.. 163

Noncarbonate ..___________________milligrams per liter.. 83 

Specific conductance_____________________micromhos at 25° C._ 449 

pH........................................................................... 6.2

Hewett did not mention the mineral springs. Regarding the spring deposits, he stated (1914) : "Siliceous 

sinter and travertine, such as in many places accompany 

sulphur deposited by hot springs, are conspicuously 

absent."

The sulfur deposits described by Hewett (1914) are 

on the east side of Sweetwater Creek and extend from 

water level to more than 400 feet up the slope (fig. 14) .

He apparently did not see the bedded sulfur and travertine, referred to later, on the west side of the creek. 

His description of the oil and sulfur is as follows 

(1913, p. 51) :

The [oil] spring is unique in that it lies within 100 yards of 

several small sulfur deposits, situated on the east side of Sweetwater Creek. The sulfur deposits * * * embrace two classes of 

material: (1) sulfur which lies along the walls of open fractures in the lavas, and from which gases containing CO, CH* 

and H2S are issuing, and (2) sulfur filling the interstices of 

gravels and surface debris along stream channels. The second 

class of material probably covers fracture zones. The oil spring 

is opposite an area 100 feet square into which prospect pits 

have been sunk showing sulfur cementing angular rock debris 

to a depth of 9 feet. Other smaller deposits of sulfur lie 700 

feet farther up the creek.

Oil was first recognized issuing from the sands adjoining the 

creek.

In the hole which was dug along the bank, water and oil 

slowly accumulated and several quarts of clear light oil were 

thus collected during the summer of 1911. During the writer's 

visit a pit was dug near the location of the old one which had 

been destroyed by freshets. The sand at this point is dark 

brown and has an asphaltic odor, but otherwise is such as would 

form bars along rapid mountain streams. In the short time at 

the writer's disposal only enough oil was collected to give assurance of its identification, but not enough for analysis.

Tho the superficial rocks of this region are igneous flows and 

breccias, these rocks overlie a great thickness of sedimentary 

rocks ranging in age from Cambrian to Eocene, the Mesozoic 

section alone being approximately 14,000 feet thick 25 miles 

east.

Another occurrence of sulfur not mentioned by 

Hewett is on the west side of Sweetwater Creek beneath 

a flat alluvial valley fill covered with trees 100 feet 

west of the camera point for figure 14. The sulfur is 

yellow, finely crystalline, vuggy, and bedded; associated 

with it is a breccia of white laminated fine-grained 

siliceous sinter similar to that deposited by thermal 

water at localities 1 and 3. Overlying this is about 3 feet 

of peculiar alluvium consisting of soft brown sand and 

silt that is not bouldery as is alluvial debris in the 

adjacent stream channel. Carbonized twigs are abundant, the darkest brown parts have a strong petroliferous and sulfur odor, and some layers look like a lapilli 

tuff. It may be that the deposit is residual debris left 

after a fire that burned the forest cover and ignited the 

oil and sulfur. Subsequently, enough oil reimpregnated 

the silt to give it the petroliferous odor.

Laboratory studies by J. G. Palacas (written commun., 1969) of a single sample of this brown silt indicate that the retained saturated hydrocarbons, restricted 

to those molecules containing 19 carbon atoms and over, 

which make up only about 1 percent of the total benzeneextractable organic matter, appear to be derived from 

indigenous organic substances, such as algal organisms, 

rather than from petroleum sources. Petroleum hydro-
SHORTER CONTRIBUTIONS TO GENERAL GEOLOGY

FIGURE 14. View east across Sweetwater Creek at Sweetwater Mineral Springs locality. Indicated are early basic breccia (ebb) ; 

exposed yellow sulfurous deposits (S) ; black sulfurous deposit (B) ; brown petroliferous iron-cemented gravel and sand (P) ; 

and stream gravel in which pits were dug that yielded oil (G).

carbons, especially saturated hydrocarbons with carbon 

numbers less than 18, may still be present, as is indicated 

by the petroleumlike odor of the alluvium, but were not 

detected by the analytical procedures used. These procedures included pulverization, extraction with benzene at room temperature, removal of elemental sulfur 

by use of a copper-amalgam chromatographic column, 

and fractionation of sulfur-free bitumen by silica-gelcolumn chromatography into saturated hydrocarbons, 

aromatic hydrocarbons, and asphaltic compounds. The 

saturated hydrocarbon fraction was studied further by 

gas-liquid chromatography. In addition, ultimate analysis was made of an aliquot of the bitumen extract. The 

negative results of these procedures on the alluvial sample, despite its petroliferous odor, suggest that future 

studies should concentrate on fluid oil from pits such as 

those described by Hewett. A puzzling feature of the 

alluvial sample is its surprisingly low sulfur content, 

which was 0.79 percent though the sample was taken less 

than 3 feet above bedded sulfur deposits.

When locality 4 was visited, both in 1963 and in 1968, 

a series of torrential floods had recently plastered much 

of the banks and stream bottom with mud so that the 

oil occurrences at water level could not be studied or 

sampled adequately. Bulk samples of fetid gravel, sand, 

and fine-grained alluvium were taken, but they did not 

yield sufficient oil for analysis. The oil is extremely volatile (C. A. Burk, written commun., 1963), and even the 

residue is not tarry or gummy as is that at Calcite 

Springs and Rainbow Springs. Sporadic traces of oil 

were observed within an area more than 100 yards in 

diameter on the west side of the creek. In 1967, petroliferous alluvium was found on the east side in a ditch

for a waterline between the cabin and the sulfur bank 

shown in figure 14 (Mel Stonehouse, oral commun., 

1968). A strong petroleum odor was detected in ferruginous cemented alluvial gravel at several places along 

both sides of the flood channel (fig. 14).

Two samples, one from a sulfur pit west of the creek 

(SBR63-362X) and the other from a ferruginous cemented gravel at the west edge of the creek (SBR63- 

363X), 100 feet north of the pit, were submitted to the 

U.S. Bureau of Mines for analysis. They were extracted 

for approximately 32 hours by means of a Soxhlet extractor with 60- by 180-mm thimble, using chloroform 

solvent. Sample SBR63-362X yielded 3.21 percent extract, and SBR63-363X yielded 0.01 percent (J. W. 

Smith, written commun., 1963) . The extract of petroliferous material from the sulfur pit was brown and had 

a rubbery consistency and an unusually pungent odor.

The position of the sulfur deposits in the bottom of 

the valley on the west side of Sweetwater Creek (which 

has a gradient of 150 feet per mile), only 5-10 feet 

above the present flood channel, indicates that this episode of sulfur deposition and thermal activity was in 

Holocene time. When larger samples of oil are analyzed, 

the source rock from which they originated may be determinable. Isotope studies of sulfur from the active 

and extinct vents should provide a clue concerning the 

source of the sulfur, the depth and nature of the heat 

source, and the relation of the heat source to the oil.

CEtiAR MOUNTAIN (LOC. 5)

The description of the oil spring at the Cedar Mountain locality is based entirely on observations made by 

others more than 60 years ago; the spring was obliter-
HYDROCARBONS IN THERMAL AREAS, NORTHWESTERN WYOMING B19

ated in 1907 by water of the Buffalo Bill Reservoir. 

Nevertheless, the scattered data can be used to reconstruct a general description that is pertinent to this 

study when considered within the context of the other 

localities. This locality is included primarily because 

the oil spring emerged directly from Paleozoic strata, 

yet is in a thermal area that previously had been buried 

by several thousand feet of igneous, pyroclastic, and 

nontuffaceous sedimentary rocks. It may, therefore, 

provide some data as to what might be expected at 

depth at the other localities.

This is the locality (loc. C, fig. 15) of John Colter's 

"great tar spring" or "'boiling tar spring" (Harris, 1952, 

p. 95). Several thermal areas are present along the 

Shoshone River near here. The one that was shown on 

many maps (for example, Wheat, 1957-1963) is now 

called De Maris Springs; it is at the east end of the 

Shoshone Canyon (loc. E, fig. 15), where colorful sulfur 

deposits have long been recognized and intermittently 

exploited. The thermal area at the west end of the canyon received no scientific attention, however, and as far 

as we have been able to determine was never studied by 

a geologist prior to its destruction.

Comstock (1875) came close to the oil spring but 

apparently did not know of its existence. One of his men 

(Assistant Surgeon C. L. Heizmann), however, described two small adjacent thermal areas (loc. A and B, 

fig. 15 of this report) as follows (Jones, 1875, p. 295- 

 296):

Camp 32, July 26, was made on the iStinkingwater, near which 

we found a large spring raised two or three feet above the 

ground [loc. A, fig. 15], with an abundant flow of a blackish 

water of great specific gravity, of strong sulfurous smell (temperature 56° ; of air 75°), and depositing black. The water contained soda, sulphates, and sulphides. The deposit was made up 

of sulphur and hyposulphite of soda. As we approached the river, 

by Cretaceous bluffs, an odor of sulphuretted hydrogen became 

distinctly perceptible in the air, observable several miles away. 

A number of extinct springs occur here [loc. B, according to 

Jones' route map, sheet 24], but the existence of numerous active 

ones near, besides the last mentioned, was indubitable.

Jones (1875, p. 17) added a few more details:

We passed the remains of a large depositing sulfur spring 

[loc. A, flg. 15]. The water oozed from a cylindrical mound of 

soft mud, a little hardened on its rim and held together by the 

roots of a rank growth of water-grasses. It lies close to the 

Ish-a-woo-a River, on the south side near where our trail crosses, 

and probably at one time contributed largely to the odorific title 

of the main river. A few miles lower down, below the canon, a 

mass of sulphur springs occur [loc. E, fig. 15] which still give 

cause for the river's name. On the North Fork we found the 

extinct remains of a mass of depositing springs [loc. B, flg. 15] ; 

the whole hill-side was covered with the large sedimentary 

mounds of soft Wack and brown earths, ihaving a good deal of 

transparent gypsum in crystals and small pieces scattered 

'through them.

Eldridge (1894) made a remarkably detailed geologic 

.map of the Bighorn Basin region and described the sulfur spring at locality E (fig. 15) but did not mention 

those up the river to the west. Chittenden (1895, p. 23), 

however, was aware of the oil spring, for he stated:

* * * after ['Colter! had passed through Pryor's Gap, he took 

a south-westerly direction as far as Clark's Fork, which stream 

he ascended for some distance, and then crossed over to the 

Stinkingwater. Here he discovered a large boiling spring, 

strongly impregnated with tar and sulphur, the odor of which, 

perceptible for a great distance around, has given the stream its 

"unhappy name."

Later, in an official report to the War Department, Chittenden (1901, p. 3781) amplified his earlier remarks:

This stream has heretofore been known as the Stinkingwater 

River. It was so named in 1807 by its discoverer, John Colter, 

who came upon it where there is a large tar spring near the 

junction of the two forks and gave it the name on account of 

the impression received at this particular point.

Fisher (1906) was the last geologist to map the area 

covered by the Buffalo Bill Reservoir before it was 

filled in 1907. He showed a small area of hot-spring 

deposits overlapping Paleozoic rocks at the west end 

of the Shoshone Canyon downstream from the forks of 

the Shoshone River (loc. D, fig. 15). He did not describe them, although he did discuss those at the east 

end of the canyon (loc. E, fig. 15) in moderate detail. 

He made no mention of the oil spring. The geology 

of the entire area shown in figure 15 was mapped in detail in recent years by Pierce and his associates (Pierce, 

1966,1970; Pierce and Nelson, 1968,1969). On the basis 

of their mapping, it seems probable to us that the oil 

spring emerged from the Tensleep Sandstone (Pennsylvanian) or from Permian rocks. Pierce investigated the 

reservoir area during an especially low water stage in 

1941 and noted travertine and sulfur on both sides of 

the valley west of the canyon and sulfurous gas bubbling 

up through the reservoir water on the south side (W. G. 

Pierce, written commun., 1968).

By far the most detailed description of the oil spring 

at locality C was by J. K. Rollinson, a rancher and writer who published several books (for example, 1948) on 

the human history of the region. As a preface to Rollinson's observations, Harris (1952, p. 95) stated:

The legend of Colter's Hell calls for boiling springs, sulphur 

lying on the ground, flames shooting from the earth, and the 

great tar spring. Much fun has been poked at the story of the 

tar springs, since none are known to the present-day residents 

of the Shoshone valley. Nevertheless, the maps of Drouillard 

and Clark, by showing the trail winding around Cedar Mountain prove that Colter, if not Drouillard, actually saw at 

least one of the tar springs. The "boiling tar spring" was not 

the product of Colter's imagination but was located on the South 

Fork of the Stinking Water just above the junction with the
B20 SHORTER CONTRIBUTIONS TO GENERAL GEOLOGY

109° 10' R. 102 W.

___BUFfALO BILL n /

3 MILES

J

FIGURE 15. 'Cedar Mountain oil seep (loe. C) and adjacent thermal localities near forks of. the Shoshone River, reconstructed 

from data by Comstock (1875), Fisher (1906), and J. K. Rollinson (in Harris, 1952, p. 170). Indicated are: A, sulfur 

spring described by Comistock; B, extinct sulfur and iron spring described by Comstock; C, Colter's "great tar spring" 

described by Rollinson; D, hot-spring deposit mapped1 by Fisher; and E, De Maris sulfur springs at mouth of Shoshone 

Canyon. Heavy dashed lines indicate original stream courses prior to flooding by reservoir water. Base from U.S. 

Geological Survey Cody quadrangle, 1949, and Devils Tooth quadrangle, 1957.
HYDROCARBONS IN THERMAL AREAS, NORTHWESTERN WYOMING B21

North Fork and at the bottom of Cedar Mountain. The entire 

area has been at the bottom of Shoshone, or Buffalo Bill, Lake 

for more than forty years. The late J. K. Rollinson, who punched 

cattle on the upper Stinking Water before the irrigation dam 

was constructed in 1906, is authority for this statement. Mr. 

Rollinson described the boiling tar spring, which he saw several 

times, 'as being situated with several other hot-water springs 

that were surrounded by a number of small semi-geyser spouters.

Rollinson's statement, quoted by Harris (1952, p. 

170),is as follows:

In the years prior to the government Shoshone Reclamation 

Project * * * there was a spring of water highly impregnated 

with sulphur and magnesium located on the extreme north end 

of the ranch then known as the Buffalo Meadows, which lay at 

the junction of the Forks of the Stinking Water River. There 

were also a half-a-dozen little "puffer" or semi geyser spouts 

* * * these small sulpho-sodium geysers which steamed up all 

the time and bubbled up mud and minerals. Then exactly at 

the very foot of Cedar Mountain close to these incipient geysers 

there was a forty foot cut bank or cave-in, and from the bottom 

of this came a considerable flow of asphaltum, which travelled 

by gravity about eighty feet before it disappeared for a few 

feet (about 30 feet) where it again appeared in one of the hot 

Sulpho-Magnesia Springs. While the temperature was (in my 

time) never hot enough to boil, still the gasses came up and 

gave the spring the bubbling appearance * * *. I suppose the 

temperature was about 90 degrees and with the foam and 

gas from the subterranial passage, it gave the complete effect 

of a boiling tar spring. This spring and all others on the side 

of Cedar Mountain were inundated by the impounding of the 

flood waters.

The various descriptions of the oil as "tar" or 

"asphaltum" by nontechnical observers suggest that it 

is much more like the viscous high-sulfur oils characteristic of Paleozoic rocks in the Bighorn Basin than 

like the typically lighter colored more fluid Cretaceous 

oils (Stone, 1967; Wenger and Lanum, 1954; open-file 

crude-oil analyses, Rocky Mountain regional office, 

Laramie Petroleum Research Center, U.S. Bureau of 

Mines). This is compatible with the interpretation that 

the "tar spring" emerged from Pennsylvania!! or 

Permian rocks.

Fisher (1906) postulated that the origin of the hot 

water (he says about 98°F) in the sulfur springs 

which emerge chiefly from Permian rocks at locality E 

could be accounted for on the basis of thermal gradient. 

Woodruff (1908), however, disagreed. On the basis of 

his study of the sulfur deposits, he concluded (p. 454) :

As the source of the water is not known, the cause of the 

heat remains undiscovered. There is no evidence of solfataric 

origin and the indications are that only a small amount of the 

heat is derived from chemical reactions, because but little of 

the material produced by chemical changes below is brought 

to the surface. It is known that intensive activity must necessarily take place to maintain the water at a temperature above 

98°F., the temperature found in these springs. It is supposed, 

therefore, that the heat is derived from slowly cooling magmatic 

bodies, probably intrusions, and increased slightly by heat from 

chemical reactions.

Pierce (written commun., 1968), as well as Fisher, 

considered a thermal gradient as a sufficient explanation 

for the hot water. His interpretation used evidence of 

high temperatures in wells 5 miles to the southeast. 

Water heated by thermal gradient in the deep part of 

the Dry Creek syncline (Pierce and others, 1947; Zapp, 

1956), 15 miles southeast of Cedar Mountain, could have 

flowed northwestward up the trough of the syncline, 

then divided, continued around both sides of Cedar 

Mountain, and emerged in the hot springs at localities 

A, B, C, and E (fig. 15). The temperature at De I laris 

Springs (loc. E) ranges from 75° to 100°F. No detailed 

figures are available on magnitude of flow, but one 

spring that formerly provided water for a swimming 

pool emitted 50-100 gallons per minute.

It is apparent that an interpretation of the geologic 

history of the Cedar Mountain area must include an 

explanation of the oil spring closely associated with 

the hot-water springs, sulfur, open conduits, and 

caverns. The hot-spring conduits would have to be so 

open that the observed volume of water could reach 

the surface rapidly enough to retain the heat acquired 

at depth, regardless of the nature of the heat source. 

Active solution of the Madison Limestone (Mississippian) has gone on for a long time, as is indicated by the 

location and elevation of an extensive network of caves, 

such as Spirit Mountain caverns and Frost Cave (Jones, 

1875, p. 17; fig. 15, this rept.) on Cedar Mountain, more 

than 1,000 feet above the oil spring to the west and 

De Maris springs to the east.

It is probable that cavern solution began before the 

pyroclastic rocks were stripped from, the area. At least 

locally, the caves developed first, and sulfur was then 

precipitated in them. For example, great bulbous masses 

of crystalline sulfur, forming stalactites and stalagmites, were encountered in some of the caves cut by the 

Bureau of Reclamation tunnel on the south side of the 

Shoshone Canyon, 200 feet or more above the present 

river level. Descriptions of this sulfur have not been 

published, but samples of the sulfur collected by Love 

in 1935 at the time the tunnel was being driven are in 

the University of Wyoming mineral collections.

It seems unlikely that these caves would have been 

formed by cold-water solution on an. anticline that had 

hot springs emerging from both sides and that th°. sulfur found in the tunnel that cut these caves would be unrelated to the adjacent thermal phenomena.

In summary, the source of oil at locality C was probably Paleozoic rocks at a relatively shallow depth. The 

close association of the oil and sulfur with hot water 

suggests that all three were boosted to the surface together. The absence of oil from locality E might be accounted for by the emergence of these springs from
B22 SHORTER CONTRIBUTIONS TO GENERAL GEOLOGY

Paleozoic rocks that had previously been flushed of any 

oil that was originally present. On the other hand, oil 

may be present but could have been overlooked.

All these various shreds of evidence indicate or suggest a long and complex episode of solution and thermal 

activity, at least some of which is involved in the emergence of the oil. Sulfur isotope studies of the various occurrences of sulfur in the Cedar Mountain area may 

determine whether the deposits are of magmatic-hydrothermal or bacteriogenic origin. More detailed studies 

of the composition, temperature distribution, and flow 

of the thermal springs and of the adjacent wells should 

provide additional pertinent information.

CONCLUSIONS

Localities 1, 3, and 4 should be studied in detail before 

they are destroyed or damaged further and vital evidence is lost. As the foregoing discussion indicates, data 

are not sufficient as yet at any locality to justify unequivocal conclusions about the origin or the geochemical 

processes involved in emplacement of the oil. Nevertheless, the data are so encouraging that they provide impetus for detailed studies which may lead to a reasonable 

explanation for these occurrences. It is pertinent to consider whether the problems of origin and emplacement 

of oil in thermal areas are worth investigating. We 

think they are. The literature on origin and emplacement of hydrocarbons in general is voluminous, and research on these subjects is continually expanding. However, oil in thermal areas is rare and in most places has 

not been studied in detail. These occurrences may offer 

previously overlooked clues as to the role of heat in 

natural processes of oil extraction from source rocks, 

the subsequent migration and emplacement of the oil, 

and the changes that occurred in it along the route.

The five described occurrences of oil in thermal areas 

are the.only ones of any type that are known to us in 

this part of Wyoming. This suggests that hot water is 

an integral part of the process that liberates the oil 

from the source sediments adjacent to the hot-water 

conduits. The primary source of heat at localities 1 and 

3 is believed to be igneous rocks or possibly magma at 

depth.

Publication of descriptions of the known localities 

will, hopefully, result in the discovery of additional 

ones that will broaden our knowledge of what types 

of phenomena are related to oil in thermal areas, what 

characteristics can be predicted for these occurrences, 

and how the data can be utilized elsewhere.

Locality 1 (Calcite Springs) shows evidence that 

there were periods of spasmodic outflow of oil, separated by periods of quiescence. Observations of these

petroliferous vents over a considerable period of time 

may show whether these intervals of outflow are related to earthquakes. If such a relation is esfablished, 

the remnants of semilithified and partly buried old 

oil flows here and perhaps in other areas may give clues 

to the age, magnitude, and frequency of prehistoric 

earthquakes. It is possible that the youngect flow at 

Calcite Springs, now rapidly breaking up, may have 

been formed at the time of the severe earthquake of 

1959 in and near Yellowstone National Park.

The source of the abundant sulfur at localities 1 and 

4 has not been explained. When studies of other sulfur 

occurrences in Yellowstone National Park and areas 

to the east are assemled, the significance of those associated with oil may become more apparent.

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O