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CLEVELAND COUNTY

POTTAWATOMIE COUNTY

OKLAHOMA COUNTY

OKLAHOMA COUNTY

LOGAN COUNTY

LINCOLN COUNTY

CANADIAN COUNTY

LOGAN COUNTY

OKLAHOMACOUNTY

LINCOLN COUNTY

OKLAHOMA COUNTY

CLEVELAND COUNTY

GRADY COUNTY

PAYNE COUNTY

SEMINOLE COUNTY

CANADIAN COUNTY KINGFISHER COUNTY

MCCLAIN COUNTY

PONTOTOC COUNTY

POTTAWATOMIE COUNTY

MCCLAIN COUNTY

0 5 10 KILOMETERS

0 5 10 MILES

97°00'

97°15'

97°30'

36°00'

35°45'

35°30'

35°15'

35°00'

Introduction

A study of the hydrogeology of the Central Oklahoma aquifer was started in 2008 to provide the 

Oklahoma Water Resources Board (OWRB) hydrogeologic data and a groundwater flow model that can be 

used as a tool to help manage the aquifer. The 1973 Oklahoma water law requires the OWRB to do hydrologic investigations of Oklahoma’s aquifers (termed “groundwater basins”) and to determine amounts of 

water that may be withdrawn by permitted water users. “Maximum annual yield” is a term used by OWRB to 

describe the total amount of water that can be withdrawn from a specific aquifer in any year while allowing a 

minimum 20-year life of the basin (Oklahoma Water Resources Board, 2010). Currently (2010), the 

maximum annual yield has not been determined for the Central Oklahoma aquifer. Until the maximum annual 

yield determination is made, water users are issued a temporary permit by the OWRB for 2 acre-feet/acre per 

year. The objective of the study, in cooperation with the Oklahoma Water Resources Board, was to study the 

hydrogeology of the Central Oklahoma aquifer to provide information that will enable the OWRB to 

determine the maximum annual yield of the aquifer based on different proposed management plans. Groundwater flow models are typically used by the OWRB as a tool to help determine the maximum annual yield. 

This report presents the potentiometric surface of the Central Oklahoma aquifer based on water-level 

data collected in 2009 as part of the current (2010) hydrologic study. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) 

Hydrologic Investigations Atlas HA-724 by Christenson and others (1992) presents the 1986-87 

potentiometric-surface map. This 1986-87 potentiometric-surface map was made as part of the USGS 

National Water-Quality Assessment pilot project for the Central Oklahoma aquifer that examined the 

geochemical and hydrogeological processes operating in the aquifer. An attempt was made to obtain waterlevel measurements for the 2009 potentiometric-surface map from the wells used for the 1986-87 

potentiometric-surface map. Well symbols with circles on the 2009 potentiometric-surface map (fig. 1) 

indicate wells that were used for the 1986-87 potentiometric-surface map.

Description of Aquifer

The Central Oklahoma aquifer underlies about 3,000 square miles in central Oklahoma, where the 

aquifer is used for municipal, industrial, commercial, agricultural, and domestic water supplies. Estimated 

daily water withdrawals from the Central Oklahoma aquifer for 2005 were 40 million gallons per day, with 66 

percent of total withdrawal being for public supply (Tortorelli, 2009). The Central Oklahoma aquifer consists 

of consolidated Permian-age Garber Sandstone and Wellington Formation and Chase, Council Grove, and 

Admire Groups that dip to the west at about 50 feet per mile. The Garber Sandstone and Wellington Formation have similar lithologies and consist of lenticular beds of fine-grained, cross-bedded sandstone interbedded with siltstone and mudstone. The Chase, Council Grove, and Admire Groups consist of fine-grained, 

cross-bedded sandstone, shale, and thin limestone (Christenson and others, 1992). Overlying these bedrock 

units are Quaternary-age unconsolidated alluvial and terrace deposits along streams in the study area. The 

Hennessey Group is Permian-age shale and mudstone that acts as a confining unit overlying the western 

one-third of the study area (fig. 1 and table 1). The Quaternary-age alluvial and terrace deposits along the 

streams are in contact with the Central Oklahoma aquifer except where the Hennessey Group overlies the 

aquifer in the western part of the study area.

Yields in the Garber Sandstone and Wellington Formation generally range from 50 to 300 gallons per 

minute (Bingham and Moore, 1975). Chase, Council Grove, and Admire Groups typically yield 25 to 50 

gallons per minute. Yields from the alluvial and terrace deposits are typically higher than the bedrock units 

and are commonly greater than 300 gallons per minute. The Central Oklahoma aquifer also is commonly 

referred to as the “Garber-Wellington aquifer” because most deep wells in central Oklahoma are completed 

in the Garber Sandstone and Wellington Formations. For this report, the aquifer will be referred to as the 

Central Oklahoma aquifer to be consistent with previous USGS publications describing the aquifer.

2009 Potentiometric Surface

A potentiometric surface is defined as the level to which water will rise in tightly cased wells. An 

aquifer with substantial vertical flow can have multiple potentiometric surfaces. The potentiometric surface 

in this report approximates only the upper zone of saturation in the Central Oklahoma aquifer, sometimes 

referred to as the “water table”. Water levels from land surface were measured by using an electric tape 

from February 17 to March 13, 2009 in 280 shallow wells (depth from land surface less than 300 feet). 

One hundred sixty-six of these water-level measurements (59 percent) were from wells measured for the 

1986-87 potentiometric-surface map published in USGS Hydrologic Investigations Atlas HA-724 by 

Christenson and others (1992). Most of these wells are used for domestic supply and are completed in the 

different geologic units in the Central Oklahoma aquifer including the alluvial and terrace deposits (table 

1). Well depths and completion information can be found at the USGS National Water Information System 

website, http://nwis.waterdata.usgs.gov/ok/nwis/gwlevels. The potentiometric-surface altitude was 

calculated by subtracting depth to water from land-surface altitude. The land-surface altitude used for the 

2009 potentiometric-surface map was determined by using a Global Positioning System, which is accurate 

to the nearest 1 foot and referenced to the North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88). Stream and 

lake elevations, which were obtained from a USGS 10-meter (3.3-foot) digital elevation model (DEM; 

http://ned.usgs.gov/), were included when contouring the potentiometric surface, except for the western 

part of the aquifer that is confined by the overlying Hennessey Group where the Central Oklahoma aquifer 

is not hydraulically connected to the alluvial and terrace deposits above the Hennessey Group (fig. 1). The 

potentiometric-surface contours were generated in a geographic information system (GIS) by using stream 

and lake elevation data from the DEM and the potentiometric-surface altitudes determined at wells. The 

contours were adjusted manually based on professional judgment to address inconsistencies, especially 

near streams and lakes.

The highest water-level altitudes are in the western part of the aquifer and the lowest water-level 

altitudes are where the Cimarron River flows beyond the extent of the aquifer. The general slope of the 

potentiometric surface is west-to-east. Groundwater flows perpendicular to potentiometric contour lines 

from high potentiometric altitude to low potentiometric altitude. The west-to-east slope of the potentiometric surface indicates that the regional trend in shallow groundwater flow is from west to east. The potentiometric surface slopes steeply toward the Deep Fork River in Oklahoma County, with the potentiometric 

contour lines forming approximate “V” patterns that point upstream along the Deep Fork River, indicating 

the Deep Fork River acts as a drain for the groundwater-flow system. The potentiometric contour lines show 

a similar pattern along the North Canadian River, but only in the eastern part of the study area. The lack of 

“V” patterns on the western part of the North Canadian River is an artifact of not using stream elevations as 

control points in the confined (western) part of the aquifer. The 2009 potentiometric-surface map shows that 

no streams on the aquifer are major sources of water to the groundwater-flow system, for example, few 

streams demonstrate the “V” pattern pointing downstream that indicates the stream could be a major source of 

water to the groundwater-flow system.

Acknowledgments

The authors appreciate the willingness of landowners to provide access to their wells for obtaining 

water-level measurements. The authors also thank the Oklahoma Water Resources Board for providing assistance 

in obtaining water-level measurements. Appreciation also is extended to Jason Masoner and Aaron Pugh for 

providing thorough reviews of this report.

Selected References

Bingham, R.H., and Moore, R.L., 1975, Reconnaissance of the water resources of the Oklahoma City quadrangle central 

Oklahoma: Oklahoma Geological Survey Hydrologic Atlas 4, 4 sheets, scale 1:250,000.

Christenson, S.C., Morton, R.B., and Mesander, B.A., 1992, Hydrogeologic maps of the Central Oklahoma aquifer, 

Oklahoma: U.S. Geological Survey Hydrologic Investigations Atlas HA-724, 3 sheets, scale 1:250,000.

Havens, J.S., 1989, Geohydrology of the alluvial and terrace deposits of the North Canadian River from Oklahoma City to 

Eufaula Lake, central Oklahoma: U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources Investigations Report 88-4234, 32 p, 12 pls.

Oklahoma Water Resources Board, 2010, Fact Sheet on determination of maximum annual yield: available online at 

http://www.owrb.ok.gov/studies/reports/reports_pdf/DetermineMAY.pdf.

Parkhurst, D.L., Christenson, S.C., and Breit, G.N, 1996, Ground-water-quality assessment of the Central Oklahoma aquifer, 

Oklahoma—Geochemical and geohydrologic investigations: U.S. Geological Survey Water-Supply Paper 2357-C, 101 p.

Parkhurst, D.L., Christenson, S.C., and Schlottmann, J.L., 1989, Ground-water quality assessment of the Central Oklahoma 

aquifer, Oklahoma—Analysis of available water-quality data through 1987: U.S. Geological Survey Water-Supply Paper 

2357-B, 74 p. 

Tortorelli, R.L., 2009, Water use in Oklahoma 1950–2005: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2009-5212, 

49 p.

Wood, P.R. and Burton, L.C., 1968, Ground-water resources in Cleveland and Oklahoma Counties, Oklahoma: Oklahoma 

Geological Survey Circular 71, 75 p.

ERATHEM SYSTEM GEOLOGIC UNIT

HYDROGEOLOGIC

UNIT

THICKNESS,

IN FEET

Cenozoic Quaternary

Alluvium Alluvial and

Terrace Deposits

a

0–100

Terrace Deposits a0–100

Paleozoic

Permian

El Reno Group El Reno b

200

Hennessey Group Hennessey b700

Garber Sandstone

Garber-Wellington a

1,165–1,600

Wellington Formation

Chase Group

Chase, Council Grove,

and Admire Groups a Council Grove Group 570–940

Admire Group

Pennsylvanian Vanoss Formation Vanoss c

250–490

a

Christenson and others, 1992 b

Wood and Burton, 1968 c

Bingham and Moore, 1975

Table 1. Stratigraphic column of geologic and hydrogeologic units in

central Oklahoma (shaded hydrogeologic units are included in the

Central Oklahoma aquifer) (modified from Parkhurst and others, 1989). 

Figure 1. Potentiometric surface in the Central Oklahoma aquifer, 2009.

TEXAS

COLORADO

NEW

MEXICO

OKLAHOMA

KANSAS

ARKANSAS

LOCATION MAP

0 100 200 MILES

0 100 200 KILOMETERS

MISSOURI

Study area

950

1055

Hennessey Group Confining Unit

Consolidated cities and incorporated places

Potentiometric contour—Shows altitude at which water 

level would have stood in tightly cased well in the Central 

Oklahoma aquifer in 2009. Hachures indicate depression. 

Contour interval is 50 feet. Datum is North American Vertical 

Datum of 1988. Dashed where approximately located

Boundary of Central Oklahoma aquifer study area

Well—Number is the altitude, in feet (accuracy within 1 foot) above the North

American Vertical Datum of 1988, of the potentiometric surface in the Central 

Oklahoma aquifer in 2009. Circle around well symbol indicates well also was 

measured for the 1986–87 water level published in U.S. Geological Survey 

Hydrologic Investigations Atlas HA-724 by Christenson and others, 1992

EXPLANATION

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1:24,000

Universal Transverse Mercator projection, Zone 14

North American Datum of 1983

For additional information contact:

Director

U.S. Geological Survey

202 NW 66th Street, Building 7

Oklahoma City, OK 73116

http://ok.water.usgs.gov/

Publishing support provided by

 Lafayette Publishing Service Center

POTENTIOMETRIC SURFACE IN THE CENTRAL OKLAHOMA

(GARBER-WELLINGTON) AQUIFER, OKLAHOMA, 2009

By

Shana L. Mashburn and Jessica Magers

2011

SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATIONS MAP 3147

Potentiometric surface, Central Oklahoma aquifer, 2009—SHEET 1 OF 1

Mashburn, S.L. and Magers, Jessica, 2011, Potentiometric surface in the

Central Oklahoma (Garber-Wellington) aquifer, Oklahoma, 2009

IN COOPERATION WITH THE

OKLAHOMA WATER RESOURCES BOARD

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY