Professional Paper No. 17 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

S . { B, Descriptive Geology, 31 mes ·l 0, Underground Waters, 21 

UNITED STATES .GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

CHARLES D. WALCOTT, DIRECTOR 

PRELIMJNARY REPORT 

ON THE 

GEOLOGY AND WATER RESOURCES OF NEBRASKA 

, WEST OF THE ONE HUNDRED AND 

THIRD MERIDIAN 

BY 

NELSON I-IORATIO DARTON 

WASHINGTON 

G 0 VERN ~l E N T P HI N T I N G 0 1<' E' I C E 

1903 ~:· 

JAN 6 1914 

CONTENTS. 

Introduction .. _ ..... _ .... ___ . _ . __ .... ·- _ ...... _ ..... _ .. _ ... _ ............. _ ..... __ ... _ .. _ .. . 

Topography ............ _ .... _.: ... _ ..... __ .... _ ..... _____ .... __ . __ .. _ .... ___ ..... ____ .. __ 

General features .. __ ... ___ .... _ ....... _ .... ____ .... _ ... _. __ ... _. _. __ .. ___ .... ____ . 

High table ...• __ . _ ... _. _ ... _ . __ .. __ .. _ . __ .... ___ .. _. _. _ ...... _ ... _______ ... ___ .. . 

North Platte Valley ____ ....... ___ . __ . _: ..... __ ... ____ .. _ ... _. _ .. _. _ .. _ ... _. __ . ___ . 

Lodgepole Valley _ .... _. _ .. ___ .. _ .. _ ..... ___ .. _ .. _ . _ .... _ ..... __ ... __ .. ___ . ___ . __ . 

Niobrara· Valley ... __ ... ___ . _. ___ . _ ... ____ .. ___ ..... __ ..... ___ . ____ ...........•• __ 

'Vhite River Valley ... __ . _ ... _. _ ... __ ...... __ . _. _ .. _ .... __ .... _ .. _ .. ___ .. _ .. __ . _ .. 

Hat Creek Basin . ~ ___ .. ~ . __ . _ ... _ .. _ . __ ... _ .. ______ .. _ . ___ . __ . _ .. __ ..... __ ... _ .. __ 

Sand hills . _ . _ . ___ ... ____ ... __ ..... _ . _ . __ . __ . __ ... _ ... __ . _ .... __ ..... _ . ___ . _ .. ___ .. 

Geology .. __ .. _ ... _ ... _. _ .... _ .. _. __ ..... _ ..... ____ . _. __ . __ . ____ . _. ___ ... ________________ . 

General geology of Nebraska. __ ...... _ ... _ .. _ .. _ .. _ .... ___ .... __ ·. _ .... _ .. _ .. __ . _ ... ___ _ 

Alluvium .... _ ....... __ ..... --····.-·-··. __ .......... _._ ............ --·-.: .. _ .... _ 

Sand dunes ..... _. __ ..... __ ..... __ .. _ .. __ .. _ .. _ .... ____ ... _. _ .. _ . __ . _ ... ___ . _ ... __ 

Loess . __ . __ .... _ ..... _ ...... __ .... __ ..... ___ .. _ .. _ ..... __ .... __ ... _ .. _ ...... ___ .. 

Drift. . __ ........ -. - -.. - - - -- ---- - -- ----- ----· · - -· · - -· · -· - -· - - - -· -: · -· -· · · · · -· · · · · · 

Ogalalla formation _. _. _. __ ..• __ ..... __ ..... _ .... ___ ... _ .. _ .. _ .. _ .... _ . ___ .... _ .. __ . 

Arikaree formation ....... _ · ..... _. _ . __ ... _ . _ .... _ ....... _ .... _ . _ ... __ ... _ ... ____ .. 

Gering formation _ ..... __ ..... _ ..... ___ . _. _ . __ . _ . _ .. _ · .. _ .. __ .. _. __ . __ .. _. _. _ .. _ . __ 

Brule day_ .... __ . ____ ..... _ .... _. __ .. _ .. __ ...... _ . __ . __ ..... _ ... _. __ . _ ....... _ .. _ 

Chadron formation_ ......... _ . ___ .. _ . __ ...... _. _ . _ . ___ .. _ .. _ . _ ... __ ..... __ ..... _ .. 

Laramie formation _ . __ ... _ .. _. _ . _ .. _ ..... __ ... _. __ .. _ . ___ ..... __ . __ . ___ ...... ___ . _ 

Pierre clay .. _ .... __ .... _ .... _. __ . _. _. __ . _. _. __ . _. _. _. ___ ... _ ... _. __ ..... ___ ..... . 

Niobrara and Benton formations ... ____ .... __ ...... _ .... ___ ... _. __ .... _. __ ..... __ . _ 

Dakota sandstone . __ .. _ ... _ .. _ .. __ .. _ . __ ..... __ ...... _ ... _ . ___ ..... _. _. __ .. __ . ___ . 

Carboniferous formations_ .... ___ .... __ . _ .. _. __ . __ . _ ..... __ . _ . ___ . _ .. _. _. ___ . _. ___ . 

Geology of the region west of th~ one hundn;d and third meridian _ .. _ ...... _ ... _ .. _. ___ . 

General relations _ ..... __ ..... _ ...... _ ... ___ ..... __ . _ ... ____ . _ .. __ . _ ...... _ . ___ . __ 

Alluvial formations . __ . _. _. __ ..... _. _. _. _. _. _ .. ___ ..... _ ...... __ ... _. ___ .. _ ... __ .. 

Sand chines .................. _ . __ ... _. __ . _ ... _ ... _ ... _. _ ... ___ ... _ .. __ .... __ .... _. 

Ogalalla formation . _. ___ ..... _ ..... _ ... _ .. ___ .... _ .. __ .. ___ . _ .. ____ ... _ .. _ ..... _ .. 

Arikaree formation __ . _ ............... __ ....... _. _ ... __ .. _ ... ___ . _ ..... _. _. _. ___ .. 

Gering formation _ .. _ . , _ ...... _ .. _. _ .... _ .. _ .... _ . __ . _ .... ___ .. _ ... _ . _ .... __ . _ . __ _ 

Brule clay _ ................ _ ...... _ ..... __ ............ __ ...... ___ ...... _ ...... __ .. 

Chadron formation ............................................... _ . _. _ ........... . 

Laramie formation . _ .. _ ........ _ ............. __ .. _____ .... _. __ .. _. _ ..... ___ ..... _. 

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4 CONTENTS. 

Geology-Continued. 

Geology of the region west of the one hundred andth.ird meridian-:-Oontinued. 

Pierre elay _ .. _ .. _ ._ .. __ .. _ ·-. ___ .. _. _ . __ . __ . __ . _ ... _ .. ____ . _______ ; _. _________ . _ .. _ 

Niobrara limestone ...... __ .. _._ .. _ .. _._. __ .... _ ...... _. __ .. __ .. ____ .... _ .... _. __ .. 

Benton formation ... _ ....... _ ...... __ ...... _ .. _ ... __ .... __ . ___ ... ____ ..... __ ..... . 

Dakota sandstone . _ ... _ ....... _ ... _. _. _ ... _ ... __ ·_ ... _ ... _ ..... , .. _. _ .. __ ... _ ... __ . 

Volcanic ash .... ·--······-........ _ ....... --·- ........ __ . __ .. _ .... ____ ......... _ _._ 

Underground waters _ .............. ___ . _ ... _. _ ._. _ ... ___ . _ ...... __ . :. __ ....... _ .. _ .... _ ... . 

General conditions ..... _ ........ _ .......... _ .... __ ... _ . __ .. _ ........... _ .. __ ..... _ 

"Vater horizons ... _ ...... __ ..... · ... _ .. _ .... _ ..... __ .... _ ... _ .. _ ... ___ ... _._. ___ .... . 

Deep-seated waters .. _ .... _._ .. _ .. _ ... __ .... _ ..... _. __ ... _ .... __ . _ .... ___ ....... _ .. 

Springs .. _ ...... _ ..... · ... -...... --- ..... ---- .. ---. ·----- ·- · · · · ·- · · · · · -· ·' · ·-- · · · --- · · · · · 

Streams .. _ ....... _ ....... _ ....... _ ...... · .............. -.. -.. -........ --- . -- -- -- --.. --. -.• 

North Platte ~iver _ .. _ ........... _. _ ... __ ..... __ ...... _ . , ...... __ ...... __ ...... __ . 

Pumpkinseed Creek ...... _ .... _. ___ .............. _ ....... ___ ...... _ ..... _ . __ .. _ .. . 

Lodgepole Creek .. _ ........ _._ ... _ ........... _ ...... __ .... __ ... _ .... _ .......... _ .. . 

Snake Creek ................ __ ...... _ ... _ ... _ .. _ ......... _ ... _ ....... __ . __ .... _ .. . 

Niobrara River._ ....... _ ..... _._._ .......... _ .... _ ..... _. _ ... _ ..... __ ..... __ .. _ .. . 

vVhite River ....... , ................................. -- ................ ·- ....... -.. 

Hat Creek Basin •.•...... _ ....... _ ..................... _ . _ ... __ .. __ ...... _ ...... __ 

Irrigation ... __ ......................... _ .................... -........................... . 

North Platte Y alley _ ....... __ ... _ . _ . _ ..................... _ .... _ ................. . 

Pumpkinseed Valley ..... _ .. _._ .. __ ._ .. _ ................ _.._ ..... _ .. ___ ..... _ ..... . 

Niobrara Valley ............ __ .......................................... __ ........ . 

vVhite River Basin ....... _ ..... __ .. _ ... __ ............... __ . _ ...... __ ....... _ ..... . 

Lodgepole Valley .... _ •.... _ .. , ... _ .. _ .. _ .... _ ........ _ ................ ___ .·. _ .. __ .. 

Hat Creek Basin ............. _ ........................... _ ....... _ ..... _ ......... . 

Windmill irrigation ............... _ ....................•..... _ ...... _ ......... __ .. 

·Climate ............................ -........ - ....... --- ....... -........ -........ -....... . 

·Timber_ .......... --- .. --.-.------------------------·-···--• · · · · · ·-- · · · · · · ·- · · ·- ·- ·- ·- · · · · 

.List of elevations in Nebraska west of the one hundred and third meridian ...... _ ........... . 

Western Cheyenne County ... ___ ....... _ ........... : ...... ___ ...... _ ... _ .... _ ...... . 

Kimball County ••••..... _ ..... __ ........................... __ .... _ .............. . 

Banner County .......... __ .. _ ..... _ ...................... _ ... __ ..... _ ........... . 

Scotts Bluff County .............................................................. . 

Sioux County ............................. _ .......... -:. -•...............•....•.... 

Dawes County ........... _ .. _ .................... -.. -.. -................... -- .... -

Box butte County ........ _ .. _ ............... -..... -.-- ........ _ ................ ---. 

Index .•..................... ---- ........... ---- -... -.--- -.-. --.- . -..... -.--.... --- --.---.-

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ILLUSTRATIONS. 

Page. 

PLATE I. Contour map of Nebraska .. -.. -------------------------------------------------- 10 

II. Relief map of Nebraska ..... __ ..... _ .... _ ..... ___ .................. ___ .. _ . . . . . . 10 

III. Scotts Bluff, from north side of North Platte Riyer ------------------------------ 12 

IV. Courthouse and Jail rocks, from the south._ ... _____ ..... _ .. ____ ._ .... ___ ... _... 12 

V. Jail Rock, from the west .. ----------------- .... ___ .. --"------------ ____ .... ____ 14 

VI. Smokestack Rock, from the east. ............... __ .. __ ... __ .•. _,_ .. _ ... ___ . ____ .. 14 

VII. A, Twin Sisters, Banner County, Nebr.; B, Wind erosion in Gering formation, 

Banner County, Nebr ............. _ .............. ___ ... __ ...... _ ... __ . _____ .. 16 

VIII. North face of Pine Ridge, looking northeast over Hat Creek Basin. __ ..... _....... 16 

IX. Preliminary geologic map of Nebraska ................. , .. ___ .... _ .......... _ _ _ _ 18 

X. Cross seetion from the Rocky Mountains to Omaha, acroes Nebraska ......... ;._.. 18 

XI. Geologi? map of Nebraska west of the one hundred and third meridian ..... __ .... 20 

XII. Cross sections of Nebraska west of the one hundred and third meridian . . . . . . . . . . . 20 

XIII. Typical sand hills in western Cheyenne County, Nebr . _ .... _ ..... ________ ..... _ _ 22 

XIV. A, Conglomerate at base of Ogalalla formation, 5 miles south-southeast of Redington, 

Cheyenne County, Nebr.; B, Conglomerate in Arikaree formation, 8 miles due 

south of Larissa, Scotts Bluff County, Nebr ------------ ·---------------------- 24 

XV. Sections of exposures of Arikaree and Ogalalla formations, at and near Langs 

Point, Nebr ............. ___ ............... ____ .............. _______ ...... -.-. 24 

XVI. Smokestack Rock, looking east, near view ..... _ ... __ ~ ..... __ ...... _. __ .. _ .- ... _ _ 26 

XVIL A, Butte of Arikaree formation, Sowbelly Canyon, Sioux County, Nebr.; B, 

Arikaree form~tion on Brule clay, southwest portion of Sioux County, Nebr ____ . 26 

XVIII. A, Blowout with core, Arikarec formation, Sioux County, Nebr.; B, Pipy eoncretions, Arikaree formation, Scotts Bluff County, Nebr _ .. _______ ... __ . __ . ___ .. 28 

XIX. Dremonelix beds in Arikar.ee formation, northern Sioux County, Nebr. ___ . ____ ·____ 28 

XX. Gering formation with fault, near Rutland, Dawes County, Nebr ___________ . __ ... 30 

XXI. Cliffs of Arikaree formation, north face of Pine Ridge, Sioux County, Nebr ....... _ ::!0 

XXII. Arikaree formation, Gering formation, and Brule clay in Birdcage Gap, Cheyenne 

County, Nebr _____ ............. _____ ..... _ ...... _ .. '.-- ____ ........ _ .... _ ... _ 32 

XXIII. Cross sections showing relations of formations near Chimney Rock and Horseshoe· 

· Flat1 Nebr ......... _ ........................... _·_ ...... ______ ....... __ ._. __ . 32 

XXIV. Chimney Rock, Cheyenne County, Nebr ............ _____ ...... ____ .. ______ .____ ::!4 

XXV. Gering formation lying unconformably on Brule clay, Cheyenne County, Nebr ___ . 34 

XXVI. Sections of exposures, showing the relations of Gering and associated formations, 

Cheyenne County, Nebr __ ............... __ .. ____ ............. ___ . ________ . _ _ 36 

XXVII. Sections of exposures, showing the relations of Gering and associated formations 

from Chimney Rock to Castle Rock .......... ____ .... _.. . .. _ ...... __ ... _. _ _ _ 36 

5 
6 ILLUSTRATIONS. 

PagElPLATE XXVIII. Sections of exposures, showing the relations of Gering and associated formations south and southwest of Larissa, N ebr · ______ .. :. _. _ ............... __ . 38 

XXIX. North face of Scotts Bluff ______ -----· ...... _______ -----·--- ....... _____ ... 38 

XXX. Bad lands at the foot of Scotts Bluff, general view. __ . _. _ .......... __ . _____ . . 40 

XXXI. Badlands at the foot of Scotts Bluff, near ,-iew .... _ .... _ . __ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 

XXXII. A, Castle Rock, Scotts Bluff County, Nebr., from the east; B, Lens of coarse 

material in Brule formation, 4 miles south of Gering, Nebr ... ____ .. _. . . . . . . 42 

XXXIII. Badlands of Brule formation west of Adelia, Sioux County, N ebr .. ___ ... __ .. 42 

XXXIV. "Toadstool Park" in badlands, northwest of Adelia, Sioux County, Nebr. ___ . 44 

XXXV. Titanotherium robustum -----------------------------· ------------------· 44 

XXXVI. Typical fossils of Niobrara chalk and Greenhorn limestone ... __ .. __ ... _. __ . _ 46 

XXXVII. Map showing distribution of underground waters in Nebraska west of the 

one hundred and third meridian. ___ . ___ ._ .. ___ ._ ..... _. __ . ___ ._ .... _.... 46 

XXXVIII. Contour map of the Upper Missouri region, showing factors bearing on prospects for deep underground waters .. __ ... _ ..... __ .... ___ . _ ... _ .. _. _ .. ___ . 48 

XXXIX. Map of Omaha, Nebr., showing area of artesian flow .. _._ .. _. __ .. _ ......... _. 50 

XL. Irrigation map of the North Platte Valley in Nebraska west of the one hundred 

and third meridian _. _ ... __ ..... _. ___ . _. ____ .. __ ... _. __ . __ .. _ .... _ . ____ . 54 

XLI. Irrigation map of the Niobrara River, White River, and Hat Creek regions in 

Nebraska, west of the one hundred and third meridian ... ___ , ... _. _ .. _. __ . 56 

XLII. Diagram of rainfall at localities in western Nebraska, 1884 to 1897 _ .. _ .. _ ... _. 62 

XLIII. Map showing distribution of timber in western Nebraska._._ .. _. _ .. __ .. ____ . 64 

FIG. 1. Columnar section of formations exposed in Wildcat Mountain and vicinity .... _ .... _ _ _ 24 

2. Section 6 miles southwest of Gering, Nebr., showing relations of Arikaree and Brule 

formations . __ . ____ . _ ... _ .. __ .. _ ... _. __ . ______ . _ .. _ . _. _______ .. _ .. _. _ ........ _ _ _ _ 25 

3. Section of Arikaree and Brule foru1ations on the north side of the valley of North Platte 

River ................ ___ .----- .... ___ .... __ ---···-----·-· ....... ·-·-·---.·-----. 26 

4. Section 4 miles northwest of Dorrington, Nebr., showing position of conglomerate in 

Arikaree formation _ ...... _ .......... _ ... _ ... _ ... _ . _ .. _. __ ... _ .. _ ... -.... _ ~ .... _ _ 27 

5. Section 8 miles south-southeast' of Gering, Nebr., showing relations of conglomerate in 

A rikaree formation .. -. __ .. _ . _ .. _ . _ ..... --... --. _ ----.... -.. -. -.... -.. - _ ...... -.. _ 28 

6. Cross section from eastern end of Spoon Butte to Sturdivant ranch, looking easL .... _.. 28 

7. Section of bluff in southwest corner of Sioux County, showing relations of supposed 

Gering formation ................ _.- ...........•.. -. _ .... _: _ ....... -. _. _ ...... _. 30 

8. Details of unconformity between Brule clay and supposed Gering deposits in the valley 

of Lawrence Fork---·---·--····--·-··-----·---·--···--·--------·---------···---·· 31 

9. Cross section of ridge lO·miles south of Gering, Nebr., looking west_. __ ... _ ... _._._.... 32 

10. Section 8 miles due south of Gering, Nebr ...... ---- .. ~ ..... __ .. _ .... __ ._............. 32 

11. Section of Gering and associated formations 6 miles south-southwest of Gering, Nebr .. _ 33 

12. Section of Gering and associated formations 7 miles south-southwest of Gering, Nebr._. 34 

13. Section of Gering and associated formations in Cedar Canyon, 8 miles south west of 

Gering, N ebr _. _ ......... -- ... -... -- ....... -- . -- .. -.- .... - . -.. ----... -..... -.---- 34 

14. Section of Gering and associated formations at the m'outh of Cedar Canyon, 7 miles 

south west of Gering, Nebr ... _ .. -................. -.. _ ........ : .. .. , __ .. . . . .. . .. . . 35 
FIG. 15. 

16. 

17. 

ILI,USTRA TIONS. 7 

Page. 

Sectio~ at Signal Butte, Scotts Bluff County, Nebr. __ .. _._ .. _ ... _.': .. ~ ....... _._.... • 36 

Section of Gering and associated formations 2 miles northeast of Darrington, Nebr. __ .. 36 

Section in vicinity of Funnel Rock, l mile north of Ashford, Nebr ___ . __ . _ .. _ ... _..... 37 

18. Section of north face of Scotts Binff ... __ ..... _ ...... _ ........ _ ... _ ..... __ .• ___ ... _ _ 38 

19. Section from Round Top to Adelia station, Sioux County, N ebr _ .. _ .•.. _ ... _ .••. _ •• _. 39 

20. Sectioi1 at Chadron, Nebr .... ___ ... _............................................... 40 

21. Section from the Black Hills to Pine Ridge, in western Nebraska..................... 46 

22. Diagram of apparatus illustrating the declivity of head of liquids flowing from a reservoir. 47 

23. Section to illustrate some characteristic features of springs in western Nebraska . . . . . . . 49 

U.S GEOLOGICAL SURVEY• 

"104° 

104- 0 

LEGEND 

D Area described in this report 

Note: The broken lines are 

hypothetical 

PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO.I7 PL. I 

.JULIUS BI£H&CO. UTH.t 

CONTOUR MAP OF NEBRASKA, COMPILED FROM U. . GEOLOGICAL SURVEY MAPS AND RAILROAD D_._L\_TA 

BY 

4 0 20 0 

Contour 250 feet 
U. S. GEOlOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. II 

RE LI EF MA P OF NEBRASKA. 
PRELIMINARY REPORT ON THE GEOLOGY AND WATER 

RESOURCES OF NEBRASKA WEST OF THE ONE HUNDRED 

AND THIRD MERIDIAN. a 

By NELSON HoRATio DARTON. 

INTRODUCTION. 

This report is based on field work of the season of 1897. It is designed mainly 

to furnish information in relation to the geologic structure and the prospects for 

underground waters. A general account will also be given of the surface waters 

and their present and prospective use for irrigation, etc. · The region is the portion 

of Nebraska lying west of the one hundred and third meridian, comprising Sioux, 

Scotts Bluff, Banner, and Kimball counties, the western portions of Cheyenne 

and Boxbutte counties, and the central and western portion of Dawes County; 

in all, an area of 7,400 square miles, adjoined on the west by Wyoming, on the 

north by South Dakota, and on the south by Colorado. It lies on the Great Plains 

south of the Black Hills of South Dakota. The Scotts· Bluff, Banner, and Cheyenne 

counties areas were· examined in detail, but time did not permit more than a general 

reconnaissance of the adjoining regions. I was assisted by Mr. C. A. Fisher, who 

obtained the data for the greater part. of Kimball and Boxbutte counties. .For 

several months I :was accompanied by Prof. E. H. Barbour, the acting State geolo 

·gist of Nebraska, who did much to further the progress of the work. 

Numerous data in regard to irrigation in the Niobrara River, \'\'bite River, and 

Hat Creek basins were kindly furnished by :Mr. J. M. ·wilson, the State engineer. 

TOPOGRAPHY. 

General feat1t?'es.-Tbe region is a typical portion of the Great Plains, which 

extend far eastward from the foot of the Rocky Mountains. To the south this 

po~·tion of the plain:; is traversed by the deep, broad valley of North Platte River 

ancl the smaller valleys of Niobrara River ancl Lodgepole Creek; to the north, at the 

u This is a reprint of the paper in the Nineteenth Annual Report of the United States Geological Survey, 1897-98, Part 

IV, pp. 719-785, Plates LXXIV-CXVIII, published in 1899. In the present edition there ure only a few corrections in some 

of the maps and a few minor changes in statements regarding geology. An index has. been udded and there is new 

pagination and renumbering of plates and figures. 

9 
10 GEOI,OGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

valleys of White River and Hat Creek, it gives place to lowlands extending to 

Cheyenne River :tt the southern foot of the Black Hills. The northern edge of the 

plains presented toward these lowlands is marked hy a great escarpment, or line of 

steep slopes, which is known as Pine Ridge. It begins in Wyoming and is the most 

conspicuous topographic feature in northwestern Nebraska. 

Pl. ·xi has for its base a topographic map of the region, with contour lines 100 

fMt apart. These contour lines indicate heights above the sea, and they are 

numbered accordingly. The lines f.or every even 500 feet are made heavier than the 

others. Contour lines are lines of equal elevation, consequently they are drawn 

along the slopes of valleys like level irrigation ditches, in this case 100 feet apart 

vertically, extending up the side valleys, and running out around the points of 

projections. They encircle detached hills, and an isolated hill rising 500 feet above 

the plain would be indicated by five of the 100-foot contour lines. From the foregoing statement, it will be seen that contour lines are crowded miar together ori steep 

slopes, but are widely separated on the plains and in the river bottoms. Thus, they 

indicate tne shape of the land as well as its elevation. 

For Banner, Scotts Bluff, and portions of Cheyenne and Sioux counties, the 

contour map is based on the detailed maps, with 20-foot contour lines, of the Scotts 

Bluff, a Camp Clarke, a and Whistle Creek quadrangles of the United States Geological 

Survey. In other portions of the region it has been necessary to employ barometer 

readings and local observations extending from points of known heights on the 

several railroad lines. These approximate data are distinguished on the map hy 

b.roken contour lines. 

I 

Pl. II is a view of a relief map of Nebraska, which also shows the configuration 

of this area. 

1/iqh table.-The original surface of the region to which this report relates was 

a relatively smooth plain, which sloped gently to the east. This plain was uplifted 

in early Pleistocene time, and the rivers extending across it excavated valleys of 

greater or less width and depth, soon givh1g rise to the broader features of the 

present configuration. The remains of the plain lie between the valleys, where they 

constitute wide areas of high table-lands, smooth or very gently rolling in contour, 

and sloping to the east. The widest areas of this table lie on each side of the valley 

of Lodgepole Creek, and extend north from the valley of North Platte River to the 

great escarpment of Pine Ridge, where there is an abrupt desce11t of over 1,000 feet 

to a region of low rolling plains which extend to Cheyenne River at the southern 

foot of the Black Hills. Some features of this great escarpment are shown in Pis. 

II, VIII, XVII, and XXI. The broad area of table terminating in Pine Ridge is 

------- ~--------------·-------- -----------

a Topographic maps of these two quadrangles have recently been issued by the Survey and may, be obtained by remitting 10 cents (5 cents for each) to the Director, United States Geological Survey, Washington, D. C. 
TOPOGRAPHY. 11 

traversed by the wide, shallow valley of the Niobrara, south of which it_is surmoun~ed 

by irregular zones of Eand hills. The edge of the table descending to the valley of 

North Platte River presents steep slopes deeply notched by canyons. Next south, 

there is an outlying area of the high plain, preserved as a long, high, narrow ridge 

lying between the valleys of Pumpkinseed Creek and North Platte River. This 

ridge is so narrow and so deeply invaded by canyons that it has lost the flat-topped 

character, except in a few small areas in its widest portions. Its summits, however, 

in many cases rise to the plateau level. The ridge owes its isolation to a former 

channel of Horse Creek, which at one time flowed through the Pumpkinseed Valley. 

Eight miles south, across the valley of Pumpkinseed Creek, a b~·anch of North Platte 

River, rises the steep face of the wide area of high table-land extending to the valley 

of Lodgepole Creek, and continuing beyond that vaJ1ey far into Colorado. The 

altitudes on the table-land average about 4,300 feet along the one hundred and third 

meridian, and increase to nearly 5,000 feet in the vicinity of the Wyoming line. In 

the southwestern portion of Banner County, and again in the extreme southwestern 

portion of the State, the altitudes somewhat exceed 5,300 feet. Here is found the 

highest land in the State. Scotts Bluff has the reputation of being the highest point, 

but its altitude is only 4,662 feet. Wildcat Mountain, which has shared the claim 

as the highest point, is 5,038 feet, or fully 300 feet lower than the highest points on 

the high table along the Wyoming line. 

North Platte Valley.-The region is traversed near its center by the broad valley 

of North Platte River, a stream which enters the State from Wyoming and carries 

the drainage of a wide area in the Rocky Mountains. This valley has been excavated 

· from the plain which, as before stated, originally extended unbroken entirely across 

. the western Nebraska region. The depth of the valley averages in the greater part 

about 700 feet, and its width varies from 10 to 15 miles. The slopes along its sides 

present many irregularities. There is first a broad fiat along the river, which rises 

only a few feet above the water. This flat merges into irregular terraces, rising for 

about 200 feet, with slopes of varying degrees of steepness. Then come steep-sided 

projections of high lands extending from the edge of the high table above and separated by canyons which aTe cut into the maTgin of the table for some distance. 

These canyons have been excavated by small streams which flow into Platte River in 

times 'of heavier rainfall. The higher slopes of the valley are marked by cliffs and 

buttes of varied form and height, which often are very imposing in appearance. On 

the south side of the valley there rises an irregular ridge of striking prominence, 

cut off from the main high table to the south by the wide Yalley. of Pumpkinseed 

Creek. The greater part of this ridge varie.s in width from 3 to 6 miles, with long 

projecting spurs and occasional outlying bnttes. Its crest is relatively uniform in 

height, about 800 feet above the bottom of the Platte Valley. In the vicinity of 
12 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OF WESTERN NJ<.:BRASKA. 

the Wyoming line its altitude diminishes greatly, but it is practically isolated from 

the high tables southward. The main axis of the ridge is about 7 miles south of the 

river, but several spurs extend nearly to the river. One of these terminates in 

Chimney Rock, shown in PI. XXIV; another at Castle Rock, shown in Pl. XXXII; 

and a third at Scotts Bluff, shown in Pl. III. To the east this ridge terminates in two outlying buttes, known as Courthouse and .Jail rocks, shown in Pls. 

IV and V. It also sends a branch ridge out into the Ptimpkinsecd . Valley, 

on which there are some particularly high knobs, one of which is known as 

Wildcat Mountain and the other as Hogback Mountain, in which an altitude of 

somewhat over 5,000 feet is attained. The western part of the ridge has an altitude 

of 4,860 feet. Scotts Bluff has an altitude of 4,662 feet and Courthouse Rock 4,100 

feet. The ridge is deeply invaded by numerous canyons, which have cut away 

nearly all its original tabular surface. Toward its eastern extremity its lower slopes 

bear extensive accumulations of sand hills, notably in the region south of Camp 

Clarke. 

The Pumpkinseed Valley south of this ridge is elevated somewhat above the 

valley of North Platte River, into which it opens at Lapeer. It varies in width 

from 7 to 12 miles. · It is characterized by gentle slopes, which extend north to the 

steep slopes and buttes of the ridge above described, and to the south to the cliffs 

and canyons at the edge ·of the high table. Lawrence Fork, the principal branch of 

Pumpkinseed Creek, occupies a valley which heads to the south and west on the 

surface of the table-lands. 

Lodge]Jole Valtey.--:-Lodgepole Creek has cut a narrow, steep-sided trough in 

the plains to a depth averaging 300 feet.· The valley contains a flat which has a 

declivity of about 17 feet to the mile, having an altitude of about 4,100 feet on the 

one hundred and third meridian and nearly 5,000 feet at the Wyoming line. Its 

average width varies from 1t to 3 miles. The principal branch is Sidney Draw, the 

two forks of which rise on the table-land in the vicinity of the Colorado line. 

Niobram Valley.-The Niobrara River flows in a wide, relatively shallow 

valley, high up on the table-lands lying between the valley of North Platte River 

and the erest of Pine Ridge. It enters Nebraska from Wyoming, flows southeast 

for 20 miles, and then nearly due east. At the Wyoming line its altitude is .about 

4, 700 feet, and at the one hundred and third meridian about 3,900 feet, which 

indicates a gradient of 13 feet to the mile. The valley bottom is seldom over half a 

mile in width, with gentle slopes interrupted by occasional low cliffs. The bottom 

of the valley is only from 400 to 500 feet below the erest of Pine Ridge, and it is 

uniformly about 400 feet above the level of North Platte River along a north-northeast and south-southwest line, while to the north the lowlapds beyond Pine Ridge 

are at altitudes ab9ut 600 feet lower than Niobrara River. 

White Rill)er Valley.-White River rises in Pine Hidge, near Harrison, at an 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVFY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. Ill 

SCOTTS BLUFF, FROM NORTH SIDE OF NORTH PLATTE RI VER. 

Dome Rock 10 the distance. 
TOPOGRAPHY. 13 

altitude of about 4,800 feet, or several hundred feet higher than Niobrara River, a 

short distance to the southwe~t. It flows to the east, and has excavated a gorge in 

the northern face of Pine Ridge, which has a fall of 1,100 feet in the first 20 miles, a 

declivity of 55 feet to the mile. Near Crawford the valley of \'Vhite Riv!'lr merges 

into the rolling plain~ at the foot of Pine Ridge, and then extend~; northeast as a 

wide, shallow depression among rolling hills, in which its declivity is only 20 feet to 

the mile. Its altitude at the one hundred and third meridian' is about 3,100 feet. 

The river receives many streams from the deep canyons in the northe1;n front of Pine 

Ridge, and a number of intermit.tent ·creeks from the rolling country northward. 

IIat Oreelt; Basin.-Hat Creek is a branch of the South Fork of Cheyenne River. 

It rises in a canyon in the north front of Pine Ridge, in Sioux County, and receives 

numerous branches also heading:. in this front. To the east, where Pine Ridge trends 

southeast and passes around toward the head of White River, the divide between the 

Hat Creek and White River drainages is a low, narrow ridge, which projects from 

the spur of Pine Ridge near Adelia, and extends far to the northeast into, South 

Dakota. The highest points on this divide beyond Round Top, the high spm; of 

Pine Ridge, are some outlying mounds, of which the most conspicuous is the Sugar 

Loaf, due north of Adelia. Where the ridge is crossed by the Burlington and 

Missouri River Railroad, north-northwest of Adelia, the altitude is 3,816 feet. 

From the Sugar Loaf northeast the ridge is moderately high for some distance, and 

then gradually diminishes in height. It is crossed by. the Deadwood line of the 

Fremqnt, Elkhorn and Missouri Valley Railway at an altitude of about 3,650 feet. 

The upper portion. of the Hat Creek Basin consists of deep canyons extending 

far into the north front of Pine Ridge. The sides .of these canyons rapidly diminish 

in height to the north, and soon give place to a region of low rolling hills having a 

generally gentle slope northward. On the South Dakota line the altitude of ·Hat 

Creek is about 3,500 feet. 

Sand Mlls.-There is in this portion of western Nebraska a narr~w extension 

of the great !:land-hill area of Nebraska. The hill8 are comprised in a series of 

detached groups that lie mainly in the northern portion of Cheyenne and the southcentral portion of Sioux counties and cover an area of about 300 square miles. 

Their distribution is shown on the map, Pl. XI. The hills are mainly from 50 to 

150 feet in height, and the areas consist of assemblages of irregular dunes with 

intervening basins and valleys. In T. 26, R. 55, and T. 27, R. 56, there are some 

exceptionally high sand hills, which rise somewhat over ~,000 feet .in altitude, or 

from 200 to 250 feet above the 8Urrounding plain. The lower dunes are in greater 

part covered with a scanty growth of grass, but there nre many areas of considerable extent in which the sand is bare and loose. These localities are generally 

'' blowouti:l" on the northwest slopes of the larger dunes. There is an extensive 

local sand-hill area along the south side of the valley of .North Platte River, on tb~ 
14 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

slopes south of Camp Clarke, which extends as far eastward as the vicinity of 

Courthouse Rock. The width o£ this belt is but 5 miles at most, and its length 

about 15 miles. An area of smaller size lie~ just west of Chimney Rock. 

GEOJ:.OGY. 

GENERAL GEOLOGY OF NEBRASKA. 

The geology o£ Nebraska presents broad structural :features w.hich it is necessary to outline before a clear idea can be given o£ the local relations in the western 

portion of the State. The principal formations which outcrop are extensive sheets 

of sands and clays o£ Cr.etaceous, Tertiary, and Pleistocene age, underlain by Carboniferous limestone, which outcrops in the southeastern counties. In the map, 

Pl.' IX, an attempt has been made to indicate the present state of knowledge of the 

distribution of the. principal :formations. It is based on a large number of new data 

:from personal observations. In the cross section, Pl. X, are showri. the principal 

structural relations o£ the formations. The following list sets forth their order, age, 

and salient :features: · 

'Cable of geologic formations in Nebraska. 

Age. Name. Prcdominan t characters. 

Alluvium ..................... Sand, loam, and gravel in valleys; talus on slopo,s. 

Sand hills .................... Sand mainly in dunes, due to wind action. 

Loess _ ..... : ............ __ ... Fine sandy loam of pale brownish-buff eo lor. 

Pleistocene ..... . Drift ......................... Bowlder clays and sands of glacial origin, and 

sandy days, sands, and p~bble beds. 

Equus beds ................... Gray. sands. 

l

Ogalalla formation (Plio-]~ [Calcareous grit, sandy day, and sand. 

cene). ~ w . 

Neoeene ......... Arikaree formation (Mio- g] Gray sand with beds of pipy coneretions. 

. cene). H 

Gering formation (Miocene) ..• Coarse sands, soft sandstone~ -and conglomerate. 

!

Brule clay ............. -~-~- ·jp_ inkish clays, hard, and more or less arenaceous. 

Eocene (Oligo- P=< S 

eene?) 2 2 

:.80!! 

Chadron formation ...... ~ Pale greenish-gray sandy clay. 

Laramie formation ......... _· .. Yellowish and greenish sandstone and shale. 

Pierre clay .................... Dark-gray day or soft shale. 

Niobrara formation ..... ·1~ ~~Chalky limestone and shale. 

Benton shale ........... ;:s M Dark-gray or black shale or clay. 

Cretaceous .. _ .... 

Dakota sandstone ............. Brown sandstone. 

(

Permian limestone ........ _ ... Buff limestones and shales. 

Carboniferous .... Cottonwood limestone ......... Massive limestone of light color. 

· Waba\msee formation ......... Limestones, shales, sandstones, and thin coal beds. 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

COURTHOUSE AND JAIL ROCKS , FROM THE SOUTH, 

Courthouse Rock irrigation canal in the foreground. 

PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. IV 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. V 

JAIL ROCK , FROM THE WEST. 
GENERAL GEOLOGY OF NEBRASKA. 15 

Alluviwm.-Owing to the softness of the Cretaceous and Tertiary formations 

which constitute the surface of the greater part of Nebraska, the river valleys are 

wide, and they are floored to a grea,ter or less depth with deposits of alluvial materials brought by _the streams at various stages of tl).eir development. The largest 

alluvial areas are along the valley of Platte ,River, which has a width of 15 miles in 

the central portion of the State. Southwest of Omaha, where the river crosses the 

hard rocks of the Carboniferous which rise in the eastern part of the State, its 

valley is narrowed greatly. The valleys of Republican, Blue, Nemaha, the Loups, 

Elkhorn, and Niobrara rivers contain alluvial deposits of moderate width, and all 

the smaller valleys contain local alluvial materials to a greater or less degree. The 

deposits are mainly sands and loams, intermixed with pebbles in some localities, and 

occasionally associated with local beds of clay and accumulations of peat and diato· 

maceous earth . 

.Sand dunes.-A wide area of central Nebraska is occupied by wind-blown sands, 

<;onstituting the great sand~hill district. Its area is about 24,000 square miles. The 

sand in this district is blown into high ridges and hills, but there are numerous intersecting valleys of various sizes which constitute a moderate proportion of the area. 

There are local accumulations of wind-blown sand of considerable extent along the 

valley of Platte River south of Kearney_, along Loup River north of Grand Island, 

·along the south slopes of the North Platte Valley west of the one hundred and third 

meridian, and in Chase, Perkins, and Lincoln counties. 

The sands were largely derived from the Arikaree formation, but it is also p~·obable that they are in part the remains of. formations of early Pleistocene age or an 

extension of the Equus deposits or the loess. 

Loess.-The loess occupies more than one-third of the area of Nebraska, usually 

giving rise to level plains, which it underlies to a thickness of about 100 feet. The 

widest area is in the table-lands south of Platte River. To the northwest it is overlapped by the sand hills, but it extends far north in the eastern portion of the State 

and to the southwest to Dundy County. On the divides it·is limited on the west by 

the highlands in Chase and Hayes counties, but extends farther up the valley of 

Republican River. The western margin in Deuel County is marked by high ridges 

of Tertiary formations, which constituted a shore against which the loess was deposited. The material of the l~ess is a fine, sandy loam, somewhat calcareous, and 

chiefly of a pale brownish-yellow color. Occasionally st1;eaks of sand and old soil are 

found, and some portions are slightly more argillaceous than USl}al. The deposit . 6 

is of a remarkably uniform texture, <~ompact, but perfectly soft. Mueh of the water 

falling upon its surface is absorbed, but on steep slopes there is rapid excavation 

wherever a rivulet gets a fair start. In the lower part of the formation, possibly 

underlying it, and entirely separate, are deposits of volcanic ash, usually mixed with 
16 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

more or less fine sand, but often consisting almost entirely of fine shreds of volcanic 

glass. 

The thickness of the loess is variable, but over a wide area of the central portion 

of the State it averages 100 feet. It has similar thickness at most points near Mis · 

souri River. .In the region of drift hills about Lancaster County the thickness varies 

from 20 to 100 feet. 

The loess is the product of a relatively long period of deposition at the close of 

Glacial time. In the.wide area in central Nebraska it was deposited by·Platte River 

at.· a stage when the river spread as a wide plexus of streams over the divide south of 

its .present course. The deposits extend far up the slopes of the high drift hills 

about Lancaster County, and probably the greater portion of this area was originally 

entirely covered by earlier loess. Missouri River spread a wide mantle of loess 

across the eastern margin of the State, and in the later stages of deposition this loess 

was deposited in the lower, wider valleys among the drift hills. 

Drift.-The. glacial drift covers the greater part of Nebraska east of longitude 

97° 30'. It is a product of the Kansan stage of the Glacial epoch, when a lobe of the 

glacier extended to Kansas River. Extending west from the glacial-drift border there 

is a thin sheet of sands and gravels, which is continuous under the loess to beyond the 

one hundred and second meridian. The greater portion of the glacial drift consists 

of blue and gray bowlder clays. There arc locally included sand beds, and in some 

localities extensive deposits of bowlders. The pink Sioux quartzite, often in very 

large masses, is a conspicuous feature of the drift, but there are many other rocks 

associated with it. \Vide areas of clay surfaces with only a few scattered bowlders 

9ccur, and there are other areas of light sandy clays, particularly on the higher level 

lands, which appear to be loess merging into the glacial drift. The drift i~ thick in 

.Lancaster and Gage counties. It thins rapidly toward Missouri River, where it is 

usually represented by a thin layer of gravel underlying the thick mantle of loess. 

The thin drift sheet, which extends far west from the glacial-drift margin under the 

loess, is usually sand or i'iandy clay, commonly of pinkish color. To the north it is 

often represented by coarse sand, and to the west it merges into a gm\rel bed. 

Pebbles of a great variety of rock's, apparently mainly of Rocky Mountain origin, 

occur throughout. The westernmost extension of this deposit observed was in the 

ta~le-land north of Big Spring, in Deuel County, where it is represented by a bed 

of gravel 20 feet thick underlying 100 feet of loess . 

. Ogalallafwmation.-:-Extending from Kansas and Colorado far into Nebraska 

there is a calcareous formation of late Tertiary age to which I wish to apply the 

distinctive name Ogalallafornuttion. It is a portion, if not the whole, of the deposit 

which in Kansas and southward has been ealled the "Mortar beds," "Tertiary 

grit," a~d other names. It has been regarded as a portion of the Loup Fork 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. VI 

SMOKESTACK ROCK, FROM TH E EAST. 

Showing outliers of conglomerate in Arikaree formation. 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. Vll 

A. "TWIN SISTERS," BANNER COUNTY, NEBR. 

JJ. WIND EROSION IN GERING FORMATION, BANNER COUNTY, NEBR. 
PROFESSION AL PAPER NO. 17 PL. VIII 

NO RTH F AC E O F P I NE RI DG E, LOO K I N G N ORTHEAST OVER HAT C REEK BASIN , 

Showing cliffs of Arikaree formation. Badlands in Brule clay in the distance. ( F rom photograph by E. H. Barbour, University of Nebraska.) 
GENERAL GJWLOGY OF NEBRASKA. 17 

formation. It is extensi,,ely dev~loped in the western part of Nebraska, in the 

region about. Lodgepole Creek and in the area hetween Platte River and the Kansas 

line west of the ninety-ninth meridian. It thins out in Banner County and in the 

central part of Cheyenne County, giving place to the northwest to an underlying 

member of the Loup Fork series. It crosses North Platte River in the western part 

of Deuel County, but its limits in the central and northern portions of the State have 

not been ascertained. It appears to underlie a portion at least of the great sand-hill 

district. In its typical development the Ogalalla formation i::; a calcareous grit or 

soft limestone containing a greater or less amount of interbedded rtnd intermixed clay 

and sand, with pebbles of V[J.rious kinds sprinkled through it locally, and a basal bed 

of conglomerate at many localities. In places it merges into a light-colored sandy 

clay, generally containing much carbonate of lime in streaks or nodules. The 

pebbles it contains cornprise many crystalline rocks, which appear to have come from 

the Rocky Mountains. These pebbles accumulate on the disintegrating surfaces of 

the Ogalalla formation, and they appear to have contributed largely to the gravel 

bed underlying the loess to the east. 

Arikm·ee formation.-ln the western portion of Nebraska there IS found 

underlying the Ogalalla formation a series of sands of gray color everywhere 

characterized by layers of dark-gray concretions which often have tubular form. 

This . formation enters the State from Wyoming, and has been found to thin out 

under the Ogalalla formation in the eastern portion of Banner County. It has a 

thickness of 400 feet in Scotts Bluff County and of 500 feet in Sioux and Dawes 

counties, the amount increa::;ing as the Arikaree displaces the Ogalalla formation 

northward. · It is extensively exposed along Niobrara River, apparently to the east 

of Valentine, and it is seen occasionally along the wester~ edge of the sand-hill 

district, but it has not yet been distinctly recognized in the region drained by the 

Loup Forks or along Platte River east of Cheyenne County. In its upper portion 

are beds containing the large D;.mnonelix of Barbour. The riame Arikaree has been 

applied to the deposit for the reason that the Arikaree Indians wei·e at one time 

identified with the area in which it i::; most largely. developed. It is distinetly 

separated from the Ogalalla formation by erosional unconformity and overlap, whieh 

is clearly illustrated in the western portion of the State. The formation includes a 

large amount of volcanic ash, as a general admixture in it:,; sediments as well as in 

beds of eon::;iderable extent and thickness. It also contains a number of channel:; 

filled with cong·lomerate, which will be described in detail later. (Seep. 28.) 

Gering fonnation.-This formation, like the Arikaree and Ogalalla formations, 

was differentiated in the summer of 1897. It consists of laminated, massive, and 

cross-bedded, light-gray, mainly coarse sands and soft sandstone at the base of the 

Arikaree formation. The character of the deposits and the abrupt change from 

14478-No. 1'7-03--2 
18 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

the typical Arikaree formation have afforded a basis for the discrimination of this 

formation. It has been found in Scotts Bluff, Banner, Cheyenne, Sioux, and Dawes 

counties, and locally attains a thickness of 200 feet. It often comprises two 

members, more or less distinctly separated by unconformity, and it lies unconformably on the Brule clay. The materials are sands, which vary from coarse to fine, 

and they are often sufficiently lithified to be classed as soft sandstone. At the b!!-se 

there is usually more or less conglomerate of local origin. In some districts the 

formation thins out and appears to be entirely absent, b·ut possibly in this case it has 

simply lost its distinctive characteristics, so that it would be overlooked as the lower 

portion of the Arikaree formation. In some cases where the fo1;mation is thought 

to be absent there is seen to be unconformity below the Arikaree beds. 

Bnde clay.-The \\Thite River beds in their extension from South Dakota into 

Nebraska present some differences in. stratigraphic range and relations. They 

expand considerably and include, at their top, beds which appear not to be ~·epresented in the typical regions. Accordingly, to afford distinct definitions for the 

members in Nebraska, I have introduced the designation Brztle clay, and separated 

the underlying Titanotherium beds as the Ohadronformation. 

The Brule clay consists mainly of a hard, sandy clay, of pale-pink color. Its 

thickness averages about 600 feet in the vicinity of the Wyoming line, but the 

amount diminishes greatly eastward. In the 'vicinity of the one hundred and· 

third meridian in the northwest corner of the State it has a thickness of 320 feet. 

The formation bas not been recognized east of longitude 101° 30', where it appears 

to sink beneath the surface in the Platte Valley. It extends far to the northeast 

in South Dakota. 

Ohad1·onfm·mation .. -Lying under the Brule clays there is a thin sheet of lightgreenish, sandy clay, the basal member of the White River series, known as the 

"Titanotherium beds." Its outcl'ops extend in a narrow zone across the northern 

portion of the State, and it is apparently exposed along North Platte River near the 

~Wyoming line. It is known to underlie portions of Colorado and South Dakota, but 

it appears not to extend far eastward in southern Nebraska, for it is absent along 

Republican River. It is reported that Titanotherium remains were obtained near 

Longpine, but nothing has bet'm learned of the relation and extent of the beds in that 

locality. 

Laramie formation.-The Laramie formation extends under the southwestern 

corner of Nebraska, but probably to no great distance. Its only exposures are along 

the State line on Horse Creek west of Caldwell and in another small area a few 

miles southwest of that place, where it rises in a low mound under the Brule clay. 

The rocks are yellowish and greenish sandstones and clay. 

Pien•e clay.-All of Nebraska west of the ninety-eighth meridian is underlain by 

the Pierre clay. Its surface outcrops are in the lower portion of the Niobrara Valley, 
liS. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

ALLUVIUM 

~- IO:ulylhew:irler a~ ·f'a.s <11'6 s1tuwnJ 

PHELL\1INARY G-EOLOGTC 

PLEISTOCENE 

o/'!ii.l'll~ :'l.i#. J l 

SAND HILL DISTRICTS LOESS (To the southeast the sand hills lif! on_ 1Under:lain by drift wlrioll is of tJacial origin 

unclassified Tertiatyforrnationswhirll east of lhe line Some highet• 

outcropinso.meofthevalleysJ -portions of tJacial dvift area appearto be 

F NEBRASKA, BY N. H. DAHTON 

ARIKAREE FORMATION 

(Overlain byF.q uus beds 

in places) 

TERTLA..RY 

GERING FORMATION 

PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. IX 

BRULE C.LAY UHADRON FORMATION 

tl'itanotherirun beds) 

bare of loess 1 CRE TAC.E 0 US CARBONIFEROUS 

UNCLASSlFIED TERTIARY \ MtUnly .Arikaree and ogalalla formations or 

"]~oup Forkj 

LARAMIE FORMATION PIERRE CLAY BENTON AN NIOBRARA 

FORM! TIONS 

DAKOTA SANDSTONE 

~ I"J 

PERMIAN ~"' SERIES PENNSYLVANIAN SERJES 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

ALLUVIUM T DEEP BORINGS 

LOESS UNDERLAIN 

·ay DRIFT 

l~i!J6'~~ 

GLACIAL DRIFT 

Horizontal scale · 20 20 eo rniles ~--~--~------~ 

CROSS SECTION FROM ROCKY MOUNTAINS TO OMAHA, ACROSS NEBRASKA.:_ 

PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. X 
GENERAL GEOLOGY OF NEBRASKA. 19 

the Republican Valley, and the extreme northwest corner of the State, but it is 

probable that careful search will reveal outcrops in the va1ley of the Platte River in 

the vicinity of the ninety-sixth meridian. The formation is a thick mass of darkgray or bluish clay or soft shale. Its thickness is probably at least 2,000 feet in the 

central-western portion of the State. 

Niobram and Bentonformations.~Onderlying the Pierre clay ther~ is a series 

of chalky limestones known, as the Niobrara formation and shales known as the 

Benton formation. They have a thickness of about 450 feet to the east, but thicken 

to the west. At the base there are about 200 feet of dark shales, overlain by slabby 

limestones of the Greenhorn formation containing Inoceranws, which are followed by 

a series of shales with few thin sandy layers, and at the top the Niobrara formation 

with its chalky deposits characterized by thin hard beds filled with Ostrea congesta. 

The formations cross the eastern portion ol the State, and underlie all of the area 

west of the vicinity of the ninety-seventh meridian, but they are so deeply buried 

under drift and loess that outcropi> are rarely visible. The most extensive exposures 

are along Missouri River, extending from near the ninety-seventh to the ninety-ninth 

meridian, and along the Rep-ublican Valley from Alma to. near Superior. The 

formations are exposed at intervals across the eastern portion of the State in each of 

the larger valleys and some of the branches. The more notable of these small 

oritcrops are at Genoa, north orGermantown, near ~rete, at Pleasant Hill, and in 

Beaver Creek north of Dorchester. There is an exposure of dark shales under some 

ledge'3 of Greenhorn limestone in Big Blue River at Milford, which are Benton. 

During the summer of 1897 upper Benton and Niobrara beds were discovered rising 

in a prominent anticline along ·white River in the vicinity of Be~ver and Alkali 

creeks, in the northwest portion of the State. 

Dakota sand.~tone.-'l'he Dakota sandstone underlies nearly all of Nebraska, and 

outcrops, in a narrow belt extending from Missouri River to the vicinity of the 

ninety-seventh meridian. It is gray or brown sandstone, containing streaks of clay 

of greater or less size, and its aggregate thickness is about 400 feet, including a basal 

series of Lower Cretaceous sandstone. Its surface passes under the Benton spales, 

and, owing to the low westerly dip and the gradual increase in altitllde of the State to 

the west, the Dakota sandstone is soon deeply buried. In the central portion 9f the 

State it probably lies over 2,500 feet below the surface. Jn its outcrop. area it is 

heavily covered by drift and loess, but there are numerous exposures in the banks 

along Missouri River in Dakota Connty~which was the. type locality of the 

formation-along Platte River from Ashland nearly to Plattsmouth, along the valley 

of Salt Creek and its branches, at Beatrice, and in the valley of Little Bl~e River 

in Jefferson County. The formation carries the great artesian-water supplies, which 

arc so extensively developed by wells in eastern South Dakota and on lowlands in 

Knox, Cedar, and Boyd counties, Nebraska. 
20 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

Carboniferous formations.-The Carboniferous limestones, shales, and sandstones underlie all of Nebraska, rising to the north and northwest abo·•t the Black 

Hills and on the slopes of the Rocky Mountains, as shown in Pl. X and fig. 21, on 

page 46. The outcrops in eastern Nebraska are in Douglas, Sai·py, Cass, Lancaster, 

Otoe, Gage, ,Johnson, Pawnee, Nemaha, and Richardson counties. The rocks arc httrd 

and would g·ive rise to more prominent features in this region if it were not for the 

heavy covering of glaeial drift and loess. As it is, t?e exposures constitute cliffs 

along Platte River from Ashland to Plattsmouth, and thence at intervals along 

Missouri River to the southeast comer of the .State, and occur in scattered outcrops 

along· the valleys of Big Blue, Nemaha, and Little Nemaha rivers and \V eeping 

·wate1·, Turkey, and Southeast Salt creeks and their branches. 

The rocks of the Carboniferous period in this region comprise formations of 

Permian and Upper Coal Measure or Pe-nnsylvanian age. The Permian outcrops are 

probably restricted to the valley of Big Blue River from Beatrice southward. The 

rocks are mainly magnesian limestones of light color with interbedded shales. They 

are extensively exposed south of Beatrice, at Rockford, Blue Springs, Vilymore, and 

Holmesville. The other Carboniferous members appear to comprise the Cottonwood 

and \Vabaunsee formations of the Kansas geologists. They consist of limestones, 

shales, and sandstones, which contain thin coal beds in some localities. Professor 

Prosser has made a preliminary examination of the Carboniferous 'of Nebraska, and 

identifies as Wabaunsee the exposures about Peru, Aspinwall, Nebraska City, 

Auburn, Tecumseh, Dunbar, Nehawka, \Veeping \Vater, and in the long section 

along Platte River near Louisville. The Cottonwood limestone, a massive bed full 

of Jfusnlina, was recognized west of Auburn about Glen Rock and ,Johnson, and the 

same beds extend over the higher lands of western Richardson and Pawnee counties. a 

In the deep borings which have been made at various points in the southeastem 

corner of the State it has been found that the Carboniferous formations have a 

total thickness of about 1,200 feet, of which about 200 feet are Permian. In the 

deep well at Lincoln the lower limestones were found to be 835 feet thick and 

underlain by 800 feet of magnesian limestones of undetermined, but probably in 

part Devonian, age; these, in turn, by limestone apparently of the Trenton formation, 

extending from 1,813 to 1,947 feet; a supposed ·representative of the St. Peter 

sandstone, having a thickness of 61 feet; 113 feet of magnesian limestones, s'upposed 

to be the Magnestan limestone 'of the Mississippi Valley; and a red sandstone, 

extending from 2,121 to 2,192 feet, thought to be Cambrian. This was found to lie 

on a red quartzite-penetrated for 270 feet-supposed to be an extension of the 

Sioux Falls. quartzite of Algonkian age, which is underlain by granite rocks 

northward. 

---------------

a .Tour. GeoL, vol. 5, 1897, pp. I -16. 
--...J.__- c 0 L 

101" 

GEOLOGIC MAP OF 'NEBRAS.K.A WhST OF THE 103 n MEHJDIAN. Coni.OrJr·H gencr•ali7.CU ft•orn rnaps 

or' 0. s.Goologlcnl SUJ·vcy --

'~-~~ 

0 

BY N.H. DARTON 

Scale 10 

Conwur inter val LOOfeet 

16 20 

'I'OPO<tH.APiiY FROM U.S. G. S. MAPS ANl) ORTGINAL OHtn:H.VATJONS 

ffilr2]t!D 

------ Co nt -s ~ppr·oxim l. d fr·om --- - RR.leve!S and Uill'OJllOlOI' r·uac\intjs 

2r; milos 

DUN J•: BANn S GRAVEI .,AOE UNKNOWN OGA ~A A FORMATiON GKIU 

-

NG FOH.Ml\TLON 

IIIJIJi1l-;l!, ·· tll!lwmm ., . ,, 

Brt.ULE CLAY 

widely ovortuin hy g1·avol ft.l1d 

u))u\'i1Jnl ulong va11oyg untlJHIPtly 

OOVCN!rl U,Y 1/t ~h ()II s/ope8 

liAI)

-H0:-1 S ANDS PrERlH~ SHALE 

l'l'ilnnoUrer·ium lJNl$1 

-----<;: ...... -<. Sr.reA.ms d r·y orunder·g,.ou ncl in s ummer 

Sections. nl.ong li11Hs l,2, :3,Hncl1:,:;L\ownon l'latcXll 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

-South 

ci 

" 

~ 0 

.. 

"' 

a: 

" 

OGALALLA FORMATION 

a: 

"' > 

a: 

.. "' 

~ ..J 

.. 

z 

.ARIKAREE FORMATION 

Rqrizon.tal scale 0 • 

ILLS 

GERING 

-

FORMATION 

lbmile s 

.r 

"' > ii 

.. "' 

~ ..J 

.. 

z 

·SECTION 1. 

SECTION 2. 

SECTION 3. 

SECTION 4 . 

BRULE CLAY 

a: 

w 

> 

a: 

a: 

... 

> 

it 

PIERRE SHALE 

Vertical scale 

0 2soo £eet. 

PROFESSIONAL PAPER N0. 17 PL. XII 

a: 

"' > 

it 

LARAMIE FOFU\1ATION 

North ·-

.J UJ.IUS B l £.1'0 &CO. L!TH. N .Y 

GEOLOGIC SECTIONS ACROSS NEBRASKA WEST OF THE l03n .MERIDIAN, LOOiilNGWEST . ALONG THE LINES l, 2 , 3,AND 4 , 0N PLATE XI . BY N.-H : DARTON , 1898 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAP~R NO. 17 PL. Xit1 

A. 

B. 

TYPICAL SANDHILLS IN WESTERN CHEYENNE COUNTY, NEBR. 

A , Leeward side, looking west; B, windv..ard side, looking southeast, showing blowouts. 
l.J. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. XIV 

.A. CONGLOMERATE AT BASE OF OGALALLA FORMATION 5 MILES SOUTH-SOUTHEAST 

OF REDINGTON , CHEYENNE COUNTY, NEBR. 

The conglomerate lies on Arikaree formation. 

B. CONGLOMERATE IN ARIKAREE FORMATION 3 MILES DUE SOUTH OF LARISSA, SCOTTS 

BLUFF COUNTY, NEBR.; LOOKING NORTHWEST. 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

. 0aALALLA l;ORMATIO:r>": 

·Calcareous grit ....•.....•.. 

Abrupt change ..... 

ARIKARBli: FOR:\IATION: 

Pale buff-gray sand~, 

pipy .:oncrution; .... 

Alornpt o;hung-e •... 

BRULE CL.A\'; 

Pink ch.y {Ba.nlly) •••• ·-·'·· 

QGALALL.A FORMATION: 

PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. XV 

----------------~---------------------------------------------------. 

0GAL.ALLA FOR:\I.ATlO:'II": 

Pink grits (pebbly) ........ . 

Softer ]•eh1Jly grit.R ...... . 

l'inkish t~ands ... _ ..... 

Pebbly beols .•.....• 

Calcareou!. grit .... 

Conglom.,rate ..... . 

Unconformity. 

BRULE CLAY: 

Pink clay ...... . 

B. 

Pink pebbly h>Tit .......•... 

Calcareou!J grit .............. ~~~~~~~~~~·· C:rit.sand!>:UH}S •.••.•••••.•. 0GALAJ,J.A FOKMATIO:'II": 

Con~lomtJt:ll'! ................ . Calcareous grit ....... . 

Unconformity ......... . ARIKAtt.EE .FORM.ATlO:S: 

.Abrupt ehange .. __ 

Gray t~anrl, with cflneretions. BRULE CLAY: 

BRULK CLAY: 

l'ink ·clay, s:uuly and norlulnr above .. Pink clay, very samly 

c. D. 

SECTIONS OF EXPOSURES OF ARIKAREE AND OGALALLA FORMATIONS AT AND NEAR LANGS POINT, NEBR. 

A, 8 miles west .of Langs Point; B, at Langs Point; C, 5 miles east of Langs Point; ]), 10 miles east of langs Point. 
GEOLOGY WEST OF ONE HUNDRED AND THIRD ~IERIDIAN.. 21 

There are possibly two other formations underlying portion:> of Nebraska but 

not reaching the surface. To the northwest there. is dmibtless an extension of the 

,Jnratrias red sandstones and greenish sands and clays which are exposed so con-

. spicuonsly ·about the margin of the Black Hills, only 55 miles distant from the 

northwest corner of the State. They lie between the Carbomferons limestone and 

the Dakota sandstone, as shown in the sections, Pl. X .and fig. 21, on page 46. They 

are absent in the eastern portion of the State, but in part are extensively developed 

in Kansas. 

The other formation which may extend into Nebraska is the LaraiiJ,ie sandstone, 

which lies between the Pierre shale and the Tertiary formations in northeast Colorado. 

It would not he surprising if this formation should be found to imderlie a portion 

of extreme western Nehra~Ska, hut it is known to be absent in the Republican Valley 

as far west a,s Duridy County, and in the region north of Pine Ridge, in Sioux and 

Dawes counties. 

GEOLOGY OF THE REGION WEST OF THE ONE HUNDRED AND THIRD 

MERIDIAN. 

GENERAL RELATIONS. 

The formations of this region comprise alluvium and dune sands and Ogalalla, 

Arikaree, Gering, B1;ule, and Chadron formations, lying on a thick mass of Pierre 

ciay and the northeaf.ltern edge of the Laramie formation. The loess and drift are 

not present. The distribution of these formations, except the alluvium~ is shown on 

the g·eologic map, Pl.. XI. Their structural relations are shown in the series of cross 

sections, Pl. XII. The older formations underlying the Pierre shale do not reach 

the surface nearer than the southern slopes of the Black Hills, where, as shown in 

fig. 21, they rise in reg·ular succession. 

The relations o£ the formations, as shown in Pis. XI and XII, are relatively 

simple. There is a broad, thick sheet of Brule clay, underlain by a thin layer pf 

Chadron formation, lying on the irregular surface of the Pierre c~ay, whi.eh.outcrops 

in the region north of the foot of Pine Ridge. The Gering formation is a thin sheet 

of coarse sand and soft sandstone which lies on the Brule clay, mainly in channels. 

It appears to outcrop continuously along the northern front of Pine Ridge, about 

halfway up the slope; it has been recognized at one point on the north slope to the 

valley of North Platte River. It is extensively developed in wide channels in 

the ridge lying next south, but it is absent in the table-land south of Pumpkinseed 

Creek, except probably in a swall outlier exposed far up the valley of Lawrence 

Fork. The Arikaree formation, consisting of fine sands with dark-gray pipy concretions, constitutes the crest of Pine Ridge and the table-land extending north of the 

Platte Valley. It also heavily caps the ridge lying between the valley,.; of the Platte 
22 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

and the Pumpkinseed, but it th!ns rapidly to the south and cast in the high table-land 

south of the Pumpkinseed Valley, and dies out cast of the mouth of Lawrence Fork. 

The OgalaUa formation, consisting mainly of light-colored pebbly sands cemented by 

carbonate of lime, covers the table-land south of the Pumpkinseed Valley, lying on 

the Brule clay to the eas~ and on . a thickening wedge of the Arikaree formation to 

the west. Outlying masses cap certain high points on the ridge north of the Pumpkinseed VaHey, and it may possibly be present on the higher portions or the tableland north of Platte River, together with outliers of the Equus beds. The larg~r 

sand-hill areas are on the table-land north of the valley of Platte River, but smaller 

areas are found in both Platte and Pumpkinseed valleys. Alluvium, which is not 

represented on the map and sections, floors portions of the va1leys and merges 

upward into wash and local talus on the slopes of the hills. 

ALI,UVIAL FORMATIONS. 

On the lower slopes adjacent to North Platte River and along the other streams 

of the region there has been deposited a greater or less thickness of materials brought 

by the streams from the higher lands. In the valley of Platte Rivei· there is a wide 

zone of bottom lands bordering each side of the river, on which is found a mantle 

of alluvium, several feet thick, lying on the older formations in which the river 

valley was cut. The materials consist mainly of sandy loams ';ith occasional co!J,rsc 

constituents. On the. adjoining terraces above is found a mantle of sand and 

gravel, deposited when the river was much high~r than it is now. The gravels 

contain many rocks from the Rocky Mountains, comprising granites of various kinds, 

quartzites, chalcedonic vein stones, often of considerable beauty, and a small variety 

of eruptive rocks. The materials vary in size from coarse sand to moderately large 

bowlders. The coarser deposits give rise to long narrow ridges or lines of knobs, 

while the materials of intennediate coarseness cover terraces, which in some cases 

extend back from the river bottom for several miles. It is claimed that small 

showings of gold ~lave been panned from these formations at several localities. In 

the valleys of Lodgepole and Pumpkinseed creeks and White River the aUuvial 

materials arc mainly in narrow belts of bottom lands, and consist chiefly of local 

materials. In the valley of Pumpkinseed Creek, however, there are at higher levels 

extensive deposits of coarser gravels containing rocks fi·om the Rocky Mountains 

similar to those along Platte River. It is. probable that this river at one time sent a 

branch stream through the wide depression now occupied by Pumpkinseed Creek 

and spread the gravel on the high tm;races. At that time the ridge lying north of 

Pumpki~seed Creek was an island in the midst of a wider Platte River, but the 

valleys were not so deep as they are now. Nearly every stream flowing out of the 

high lands has brought down more or less alluvial material in the shape of sand or 

local gravel, which merges into the alluvial deposits of the larger valleys. There 
GEOLOGY WEST 01!' ONE HUNDRED AND THIRD MERIDIAN. ~3 

is also on nearly all of the slopes adjoining the valleys a talus or wash of· sand and 

clays from above, which often covers the underlying formations to consider~ble 

thickness. 

None of the alluvial formations have been shown on the geologic map, Pl. XI, 

because some of their relations are too intricate for accurate representation on a 

small scale. 

SAND DUNES. 

The sand hills are a distinct geologic formation in this region, in part contemporaneous with the alluvial deposits along the .bottoms of river valleys. They are in 

process of formation and modification by the strong winds, and are in a measure still 

moving to the southeast. Two typical views of the sand-hill region are reproduced 

in Pl. XIII. The S!tnd now constituting the :,;and hills was derived mainly from 

the Arikttree formation, having been carried over the plains by the wind and 

accumulated about the obstructions. The manner in which the sand is blown away 

is well illustrated in :J;>l. XVIII, A. The sand-dune areas in the North Platte Valley 

no doubt derived a portion of their material fro1n the sand banks and other aHuvium 

of the river which havebeen blown by t~e wind and lodged against obstructions. 

This is particularly well illustrated in the area which abuts against Chimney Rock. 

The small areas about Caldwell and Dorrington and at other point~ in the 

Pumpkinseed Valley are probably of similat; origin, except in a few cases where 

local sources have supplied the materials. 

OGALALLA FORMATION. 

The Ogalalla formation is the uppermost division of the Tertiary deposits of 

this region. It constitutes the high table-lands on both sides of the Lodgepole 

Valley, and caps the several small high summits about Wildcat Mountain, northwest 

of Ashford. As before explained, it is in the main the extension of the "Tertiary 

grit," "Magnesia," or "Mortar beds" of the Kansas geologists. It consists of an 

impure calcareous grit, or sand cemented with carbonate of lime. 'At its base there 

are often beds of conglomerate, with pebbles consh;ting mainly of gray sandstone or 

limestone. Throughout its mass there are scattered pebbles of crystalline rocks 

from the Rocky Mountains, streaks of pebbly sand, and thin ledges of Elandstone. 

The harder calcareous beds are of white or cream color, and outcrop in irregular 

cliffs along the slopes of depressions. Some softer intercalated beds of sandy 

chatacter are of light-pinkish color. The formation has a relatively level surface, 

which constitutes the floor of the high table-land.of Kimball County and the southern 

portion of Banner and Cheyenne counties. When the rock disintegrates on the 

surface a greater or less accumulation of sand and scattered pebbles remains, often 

constituting a soil of grea.ter or less thickness. This soil, when irrigated, usually 

proves to be very prod~ctive. The g-eneral thickness of the Ogalalla formation 
24 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

varies from 150 to 300 feet, the greater amount being along the ·wyoming line, ih the 

northwest corner of Kimball County. As the surface has been more or less 

eroded, the original thickness is unknown. The altitude of its base is 4,100 feet 

south of Lapeer, 5,200 feet west of Harrisburg, 4,300 feet near Bronson, 5,100 feet 

west of Bushnell, and 5,000 feet on Wildcat Mountain. The wider relations of 

the OgalaUa f01:mation to the older Tertiary formations are shown in the cross 

sections in Pl. XII. ln these sections it will be seen that in Lodgepole Valley 

the Ogalalla formation lies directly on the Brule clay; tdong the south side of the 

Ogalnlla calca:eous grit ........... ·{ 

Conglomel'ate .............. . 

Impure volcanic ash .•.....• 

Volcauie a::;h 8' .. · ........... . 

Gray sand ·with pipy coucret.ionS .. 

"'j Abrupt change. t Pink clay ............... . 

"' . 

FIG. 1.-Column~r section of formations exposed in Wildcat Mountain and vicinity, Banner County, Nebr. 

Pumpkinseed Valley it lies on the Brule clay to the east, and then on the Arikaree 

formation, which comes in and gradually thickens to the west. An exposure of its 

basal conglomerate is shown in PI~ XIV. At this exposure the Arikaree. beds are 

thin; as shown in Pl. XV, a It is everywhere clearly separated below by erosional 

unconfornl.ity, and its base is usually tL shore deposit of pebbles of gray siliceous 

and calcareous rocks. In . the outliers about vVildcat Mountain the thickness is 

about 5o feet, and the formation lies on tL thick mass of Arikai·ee formation, from 

which the basal eonglomerate is very distinctly separated Ly an unconformity. The 

relations in thit; vicinity are shown in fig. 1. 
GEOLOGY WEST OF ONE HUNDRED AND THIRD MERIDIAN. 25 

Some typical sections illustrating the relations of the formations are given in 

Pl. XV. There may possibly be a small area of Ogalalht formation to the east on 

portions of the table-land north of North Platte River, but it was not distinguished. 

A few vertebrate remains were collected in this formation, and it was found to 

contain the smaller Dcemonelix forms in considerable abundance in some localities. · 

ARIKAHEE FORMATION. 

The Arikaree formation attains its greatest d~velopment m Pine Ridge, where 

it presents a thickness of about 500 feet. It constitutes a wide ar~a of table-land 

extenclingfrom Pine Ridge to the northern margin of the valley of North Platte 

River. It occupies the ridge lying between the valleys of North Platte River and 

Pumpkinseed Creek, and to the southwest it is exposed in the slope:> of the table0 

~ Gray ~and with ;:: crettOns . 

~ 

" 2 " 

" ·,c 

"' 

2 

Dark-g-ray 5and, few cretions ............. . 

(No brenk.) 

~ Pink clay, sandy above. 

~ 

J.'IG. 2.-;-Section G miles west of Gering, Nebr., showing relations of Arikaree and Brule formlltions. 

lands next south. The formation consists mainly of fine sand containing characteristic 

layers of hard, fine-grained, clark-gray concretions, often consisting of aggregations 

of long, irregular, cylind.rical masse::;. These, for convenience, have been called 

'' pipy concretions." They vary in thickness from a few inche::; to several feet, but 

from 10 to 15 inches is tl. fair average. Their trend is east-noi-theast and we~tnorthwest wi~h surprising regularity. The layers are often many i:lquare yard:> in 

area. A typical exposure of the concretions i::; shown in Pl. XVIII, B. The sands 

vary from loose to fairly compact, and some are argillaceou::;. The colors are 

uniformly light gray. Owing to the presence of the hard concretions, the formation 

generally gives rise to ridges of con::;iclerable prominence. The steep escarpment of 

Pine Ridge consists almost entirely of Arikaree cliffs, of which typical views are 

given in Pls. VIII, XVII, and XXI. The relations of the Arikaree formation to 

associated deposit:> are particttlady well exposed in the slopes adjoining the Platte 

and Pumpkinseed valleys. The fonnation lies on the Gering beds at many points, 
26 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OE' WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

but in some areas appears to rest immediately on the surface of the Brule clay. 

There is often no evidence of unconformity in either case. Usually there is an 

abrupt change in t,he character of the materials as the coarse beds of the Gering 

formation give place to fine massive Arikaree sands containing the pipy concretions. 

In some cases this concretionary development appears to have extended down into 

the Gering sediments, especially locally where these sediments are fine sands. This 

relation i~:~ illustrated in fig. 2, and possibly also in fig. 14, on page 35. 

There is a possibility that the upper member of the Gering formation iH a basal 

portion of the Arikaree formation, as suggested at some localities, which would 

often add difficulty to the identification of the Gering formation where it consisted 

of only one member. Along the north side of the Platte Valley, the south side of 

" 0 

~ 

a 

~ Grn.r ~and with pipy concretion:,,( 

:e 

~ ·.: 

.. 

.. 

d 

Fewer concretions ... , ..... 

~ Pink clny, Randy above .... 

= Iii 

FIG. 3.-Scction of Arikaree and Brule formations on the north side of the valley of North Platte River. 

the Pumpkinseed Valley, and in portions of the ridg·e between these two valleys the 

Arikaree fon~ation appears to lie directly on the Brule clay. In thyse instances 

there is often either only a faint suggestion of unconformity between the two 

formations when the exposures are carefully examined or simply a very rapid 

change from sandy, pinkbh Brule clay, with some small siliceous concretions, to 

fine gray t;ands with the typical character and pip.r concretions of the Arikaree 

formation. Fig. 3 shows the usual relations presented in the exposures along the 

north :-;ide of the Platte Valley. 

In Pl. XVIl, B, is shown an exposure in which th~re is marked unconformity 

between Arikaree and Brule deposits, and other exhibitions of similar relations are 

shown in sections A and C of PI. XV, sections C and. D of Pl. XXVII, and Pls. 

XXV I and XXVIII. The relations of the Arikaree formation to the Ogalalla 

formation are described on page 24. The two formations are sharply separated by 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. XVI 

SMOKESTACK ROCK, LOOKING EAST ; NEAR VIEW. 

Conglomerate in Arikaree formation. 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. XVII 

A. BUTT E OF ARIKAREE FORMATION, SOWBELLY CANYON, SIOUX COUNTY, NEBR. 

l:i. ARIKAREE FORMAT ION ON BRULE CLAY, SOUTHWEST PORTION OF SIOUX 

COUNTY, NEBR. 

' 
GEOLOGY WEST OF ONE HUNDRED AND THIRD MERIDIAN. 27 

an abrupt change in character of materials, and the basal Ogalalla beds are mainly 

conglomeratic. The thinning out of the Arikaree deposits to the southeast is 

clearly illustrated in many exposures south of Redin~ton. All along the northern 

edge of the table-land in Banner County the formation has less thickness than it 

presents in the ridge north, where, in the vicinity of Wildcat Mountain, it is 

nearly 500 feet thick. Southwest of Harrisburg the amount is about 150 feet; south 

of Freeport it is 100 feet, as shown in Pl. XV, A; in Hackberry Canyon it is 40 feet; 

and at Langs Point Arikaree beds are absent, the Ogalalla conglomerate here lying 

directly on the Brule clay, as shown in section B of Pl. XV. .Southeast of Langs 

Point there are a few thin outlying lenses of Arikaree b~ds, one of which is shown 

in section C of Pl. XV, but thence to the east it thins out and the typical relations 

presented are those shown in section ]) of Pl. XV. In the upper portion of the 

valley of Lawrence Fork there is an outlying area of the formation, only a few feet 

thick, between supposed Gering and Ogalalla formations, as shown in fig. 8 (p. 31). 

::i Conglomerate ..... : ........ · ........ . 0 

~ 

E 

.;: Grfly sand with pipy concretions .. 

0 

~ 

"' ., 

., Abrupt change ..... . 

Pink clay .. 

Volcanic ash 6' ...... , ...... . 

Pink clny . . ...................... . 

FIG. ·L-;-Section 3 miles northwest of Dorringtcm, Nebr., showing the relations of conglomerate in Arikaree formation. 

Dmmonel1~m in various forms occurs extensiycly in this formation, and in Pine 

Ridge, in Sioux County, the !arge forms of the "DevH's corkscrew" are found 

in very great abu~1dance in the upper beds of the formation. Prof. E. H. Barbour 

has described these forms in detail and given an account of their mode of occurrence. ct The]arger forms are most abundant in the upper portions of the depressions 

north of Harrisoi1, but they were observed also as far east as Andrews, for some 

distance in the valley of Niobrara River above Royville, and as far west as Lusk, in 

~Wyoming. The smaller forms are very generally present throughout the region, 

and they also occur in the Ogalalla formation. In Pl. XIX is shown an exposure 

of typical Dremonclix beds containing the larg·e corkscrew forms: It is believed 

that no one observing these fossils in the field would have any doubt as to their 

vegetal nature. 

a Bull. GeoL Soc. America, vol. 8. 1897, pp. 305-314. 
28 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OE' WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

In a portion of its area the Arikaree formation has been observed to contain a 

series of old channels filled with coarse conglomerate. The occurrence of this 

conglomerate is apparently restricted to the ridge lying next south of North Platte 

River and to the vicinity of Spoon Butte, near the head of Sheep Creek, in Sioux 

County. The horizon is somewhat above the base of the formation, and the 

conglomerate is distinct from some local beds of coarse deposits occasionally noticed 

at or ncar the base of the formation. 

..Arikaree formation, .... ·j 

Gering; formation ....... . 

- Unconformity .. 

Brnle pinl{ clay ......... . 

!

Conglomerate. 

Arikaree for111ation... 

}Gering sand. 

Unconformity. 

}Brule c1ay • 

FIG. 5.-Sections 8 Jnilcs ..south-southeast of Gering, Nebr., showing relations of conglomerate in Arikuree formntioas. 

Some of the relations of these conglomei·ate-fillcd channels are shown in section 

F of Pl. XXVIII, and in Pis. VI, XIV, and XVI, and fig. 5. Beginning at the east, 

the first outcrops observed were in Smokestack Rock, in Banner County. They 

were next seen at intervals westward along the south line of Scotts Bluff County, in 

buttes and high points, as far west as the meridian of Gering, and detached areas are 

N s 

FIG. 6.-Cross section from the castem end of Spoon Butte southward to Sturdivant ranch, looking east. 

e-l'posed on the nortl;t side of the ridge southwest of Gering. 

at a point 3 miles north-northwest of Dorrington, near 

ridge, where it .has the relations shown in fig. 4. 

The last outcrop occurs 

the western end o:f the 

It is probable that the channel is continuous under the ridge between these 

points. Some. features of the more prominent exposures are shown in Pis. XIV 

and XVI. The material is a conglomerate of pebbles and bowlders of gray sand-
GEOLOGY WEST OF ONE HUNDRED AND THIRD MERIDIAN. 29 

stone, generally firmly cemented by siliceous matrix. The greatest thickness 

observed was 30 feet, in the high point 3 miles south of Larissa. Smokestack 

Rock expose~:> about 25 feet. At niany localities it may be seen that the beds lie on 

typical Arikaree deposits, as shown in Pl. XIV, B, and they are overlain by typical 

beds of the samefor·mation. This relation is shown i~ fig. 5 (p. 28) and fig. 12 (p. 34). 

In the 8poon Butte and adjoining ridges the conglomerates are of somewhat 

different character, consisting in large part of crystalline rocks and apparently lying 

on a steeply sloping surface. The relations are shown in fig. 6. 

In this vicinity it was not practicable to ascertain the relations to overlying beds. 

The Arikarec deposits eontain a large amount of volcanic ash, mainly as a constituent intermixed with the sand, but there are also :,;everal distinct beds of ash at 

one or two horizons, though only of loeal occurrence. The relations of these beds 

are indicated in section .A of Pl. XXVIII and figs. 1, 7, 10, 12, and 18, and.some 

further information regarding them will be found on page 42. . 

Mollusean fresh-water fossils of several species have been found in this formation, but they are not sufficiently distinctive to indicate its age precisely. · One . 

abundantly fossiliferous locality was discovered south of Gering, where the matrix 

was a thin bed of diatomaceous earth. Vertebrate remains were collected in small 

number~:>. 

GERING FOW\lATlON. 

Underlying the Arikaree formation, in a portion of the area, there is a series of 

coarse sands, often containing pebbles, which appears to be an entirely distinct 

:formation. It is not separated by,unconformity, but it has distinctive chai·acters over 

an area of considerable extent. In its typical exposures it is separated from the 

Brule clays by a clearly marked unconformity, some of the features of which are 

shown in Pl. XXV. Its thickness varies from a thin wedge to over 200 feet. Its 

relations are extensively exhibited in the ridge lying next south of North Platte 

R1 ver, and it. is thick and apparently continuous along the northern face of Pine 

Ridge. The southernmost exposures are some doubtful ones on Lawrence Fork, near 

its head. In Pls. XXVI, XXVII, and XXVIII, and figs .. 'T to 17, the sti:atigraphic 

relations of this formation are illustrated. Its gTeatest development in the Platte 

Valley is south-southwest of Gering, where 200 feet are exposed, and about Chimney 

Rock, where a thickness of about 145 feet is attained. · It is over 100 feet thick in 

Courthouse Rock and in the vicinity of Birdcage Gap and Redington Gap. To the 

west and south it thins out, and at some points along both sides of the ridge it ~s 

apparently absent, or possibly where it appears to be absent it is represented either 

by clayey members which are not distinguishable from the Brule clay or by fine 

sand with concretions resembling Ogalalla bed~:>. Its absence is almost certain in the 

ridg;e about \'Vildcat Mountain. In Scotts Bluff the relations of the formation are 
30 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

'Very distinct and 60 feet are exposed. On the slopes north of Platte River the 

formation appears to be absent except in a small area near the southwest corner of 

Sioux County, where the features shown in :fig. 7 indicate that the formation is 

probably present locally. 

Along the north face of Pine Ridge the formation presents the features shown 

in figs. 19 and 20 (pp. 39 and 40) and Pl. XX. 

Some further facts and inferences as to its relations arc shown in cross sections 

in Pl. XII. No de:fiuite evidence of the continuance of the formation could be found 

lll the slopes south of Pumpkinseed Creek except in the valley of Lawrence Fork, in 

sec. 4, T. 16, R. 64, where there is an exhibition of the features shown in :fig. 8. 

In the Lodgepole Valley the Arikaree formation appears to lie directly on the 

Brule clay, both the Gering and Og·alalla formations being abse11t. 

~ Gray stmd with pipy coneretidns .......... . 

J 

~ 

0 

• " 

lJon.rse siltandash5' ....... . 

~ Gray sand with pipy'concretions ..... 

--: 

,; j l'oarsc, nearly pure ash 17:!'' ......... . 

tllo 

::::c; 

·~ ~ Gray sand!'!, ]Jartlycoarseand with pebbles. ~s 

"~ ~ . Unconfornnty ............... . 

;;_ 

-5 

~ Pink elay ........................ . 

"' Imput·e ash .. 

FIG. ·7.-Section of bluff in sonthwe't corner of. Sioux County, showing relations of supposed Gering formation. 

The Gering formation presents many local :features of stmtigraphy, rarticularly 

m the ridge between the valleys of Platte River and Pumpkinseed Creek. Beginning at .Tail Rock, there are instructive exposures at :frequent intervals to the 

western end of the ridge. At Courthouse Rock there are presented the relations 

shown in section A of Pl. XXVI. At an altitude of 3,940 feet the distinctive Brule 

clay is. unconformably overlain by the Gering formation, apparently comprising two 

members, separated by marked unconformity by erosion. In both members there 

are coarse beds below containing local conglomerate, merging upward into sand, and 

:finally into o;andy clay. The total thickness is 110 feet. The characteristic Arikaree 

formation capping Courthouse Rock begins abruptly, bu~ with no sign of unconformity. .Jail Rock, as shown in P1. V, is capped by the Gering formation. The 

two ~embers of thjs formation present about the same relations at Birdcage Gap as 

shown in section B of Pl. XXVI, but they have somewhat greater thickness. In 

the pinkish sandy elay, at an altitude of 4,080 feet, there was found a portion of the 
GEOLOGY WEST OF ONE HUNDRED AND THIRD "MERIDIAN. 31 

skeleton of a new species of Dinictis. a · A view of the relations in Birdcage Gap is 

given in Pl. XXII. 

At Redington Gap the upper member of the Gering formation is nqt distinguishable, rtncl the total thickness is less. A local bed of volcanic ash 5 feet thick 

appears to mark the top of the formation. The principal features arc shown in 

section 0 of Pl. XXVI. Three miles northwest of Redington Gap there was found 

the section shown in Pl. ·XXVI. D. The Gering formation here presents the usual 

basal beds of coarse material lying unconformably on the Brule clay. The change 

to the Arikaree formation above is abrupt, but not marked by unconformity. 

VERTICAL SCALE 

FIG. 8.-Details of unconforfnity between Brule clrty rtnd supposed Gering deposits in valley of Lawrence Fork, sec. 4, 

T. 16, R. 54. 

. Approaching Chimney Rock there arc presented the features shown. in sections 

E and F of Pl. XXVI. The thickness of the Gering form~ttion here averages about 

125 feet, and there is much local variation in the stratigraphy. Coarse basal beds 

are often exposed lying unconformably on the Brule clay. A thin local bed of 

volcanic ash is conspicuous in some exposures. Chimney Rock consists of a spire 

of Gering formation rising from a conical hill of Brule clay. The material is a 

gray, thin-bedded, soft. sandstone with slightly coarser materials at its base. The 

«Recently described by F. A. Lucas llS Dinictismajor: Am. Jour. ~ci., 4th series, vol. 6, 1898, pp. 3Q9-400. 
32 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY 01!' WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

unconformable contact with the Brule clay is at an altitude of 4,100 feet, and there 

is here considerable carbonaceous material, strongly ;_;uggestive of an old soil. At 

an altitude of 4l135 feet there is a faint unconformity, just above which there are 

two thin beds containing volcanic ash. Two views of Chimney Roek are given in Pl. 

XXIV, and the relations of the formations are shown in section A of Pl. XXVII. 

FIG. 9.-Cross section of ridge 10 miles south of Gering, Kebr., looking west. 

Southwest of Chimney Rock the ·Gering formation gTeatly decreases in thickness, hut it continues. to present its characteristic. features, as shown in seetions B 

and 0 of Pl. XXVII. The two members are well eharacterized as far as the east 

" .£ 

d 

€ 

0 

~ Gray !?(and with pipy eoncretions ... 

~ 

1l 

·c 

., 

~~.§{\'alebu:,:::::::::·~~~~:::·:::.:.:·l ~~~~~~~~~-·--4400, ~~"'-' Uneonforillity .............. . 1-'nrc· Yok·nnic ash 2' 

.:. 

d 

~ 

Pink clay 

'"" Vol<.'unic a:;h 6'. 

E 

'" 

Pink<.>lay 

FIG. 10.-Scctioj' 7 miles due south of Gering, Nebr. 

··-·4340' 

side o£ Sheep Mountain. Along the. south side o£ this butte the basal member o£ 

th~ Gering formation h;, in places, not clearly separable. 

At the curiously seulptured Twin Sisters, which are of Gering £ormation, the 

unconformity is finely exhibited, as shown in Pl. VII, A. The materials consist of 

coarse sands and soft sandstone, ~erging upward into a 6-foot bed o£ pinkish sandy 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. XVIII 

A. BLOWOUT WITH CORE, ARIKAREE FORMATION , SIOUX COUNTY, NEBR. 

B. PIPY CONCRETIONS, ARIKAREE FORMATION, SCOTTS BLUFF COUNTY, NEBR. 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. XIX 

DfEMONELIX BEDS IN ARIKAREE FORMATION AT HEAD OF LITTLE MONROE CANYON, SIOUX CO UNTY, NEBR. 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSlONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL XX 

GERING FORMATION WITH FAULT, NEAR RUTLAND , DAWES COUNTY, NEBR. 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. XX I 

CLIFFS OF ARIKAREE FORMATION , NORTH FACE OF PINE RIDGE, NEAR MONR O E 

CANYON , SIOUX COUNTY , NEBR. 

(F rom photugra.oh by E. H. Barbour, Universi ty of Ne bras ka.) 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVfY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 Pl. XX II 

ARIKAREE FORMATION , GERING FORMATION , AND BRULE CLAY, IN BIR DCAGE GAP, 

CHEYENNE COUNTY, NEBR. 

Loo ki ng north east th rough the gap. 
U. 8, GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. XXIII 

A. 

s. 

B 

N.W. 

- ARIKAREE FORMATION ~BRULE P/N<CLAY ["_<_::;.-/ j GERING SANDS ~VOLCANIC ASH 

Horizoutal scale !-1 1 mile 

~----~-----L----------~ 

CROSS SECTIONS, SHOWING RELATIONS OF FORMATIONS NEAR CHIMNEY ROCK AND HORSESHOE FLAT, NEBR. 

A, Near Ch1mney Rock; B, near Horseshoe Flat. 
GEOLOGY WEST OF ONE HUNDRED AND THIRD MERIDIAN. 33 

clay, above which there is a moderately sharp break, followed by an upper member 

of gray sand which constitutes the heads and shoulders of the "Sisters." Some of 

,~he relations in this vicinity are shown in section B of Pl. XXIII, which also shows 

the apparent thinning out of the formation a short distance northward. 

The Gering formation appears to be absent at the Smokestack and in Round 

Top, Coyote Hill, and Castle Rock. In Castle ·Rock, as shown in section D of Pl. 

XXVII, the Brule clays become sandy in their upper portion, but present no suggestion of stratigraphic break .until the base of the well-eharacterized Arikaree 

deposits is reached, at an altitude of 4,340 fee,t, where there is an unconformity 

§ 

~ E 

'" ; Gray sands with plpy concretions .. 

~ 

"' 

~ 

Abrupt change .... . 

Sanrl and pebbles ................... . 

§ Unconformity .... , ...... . ~ :\Ias~dve lJuff sand. . . . .... . 

E Sand~, pebbly below, fine above .... { 

~ ~~\?~~-~~~~::J" U~h·::::::::::: t_ San~lund pebbles .....•............. ·1 

~ Pink sa~~~~~!~~~~~:.::~::::::::::::: .. Pink sands and clay ..... . 

Cua r~c sand.. . . . . ...... . Unconformity .. . 

~ 0 

~ S Pink clay ..•..•............. 

Pi 

Sandy lens ...... . 

•• .t!,.Soo' 

FIG. 11.-Section of Gering and associated formations 6 miles south-southwest of Gering, Nebr. 

marked by a bed of white e.lay a foot thick on a carbonaceous surface strongly 

suggestive of old soil. · This soil and the relations of the formation indicate that there 

was here a land surface while the Gering formation was being deposited to the south. 

The Gering formation extends continuously for several miles west from the Twin 

Sisters. At a point 4 miles west-northwest it has the relations shown in section F 

of Pl. XXVIII, consisting of two members with an aggregate thickness of 120 feet. 

It contains the usual coarse beds at the base of each member, and in the base of the 

lower member there is a 2!-foot bed of pure volcanic ash. In the next bluff, lt 

miles northwest, there are exposed the features shown in section 0 of Pl. XXVIII. 

14478-No. 17-03--3 
34 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OJ!' WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

In the next H miles the formation thins rapidly, as shown in section B of Pl. 

XXVIII, and it appears to thin out locally to the south and at intervals to the west. 

Volcanic ash ... 

" 0 

'll E Gray sand with plpy concretions . . .. .. . .. ...... . . .. . 

,2 

j 

Dark·gray sands .. ..... . .... . .. .. . . . ..... ...... ... ... , .... .. · Volcanic ash.: ..... . ...... . ..... . . .. .............. . Dark-gray sands . ......... . ..................... . . . 

! Unconformity ...... . ....... ...... ................. . n ~ {Pink sa~::o:;:,::,:;i~g d~,~~~ i~t~.·~~-d ~~-d -~~~~~~: ._{ 

u{Pink clay . . ............... . . . .. . .... . .....•.... 

FIG. 12.-Section of Gering and associated formations 7 miles south-southwest of Gering, Nebr. 

In the high butte 2! miles west-southwest of Larissa, as shown in section A of 

Pl. XXVIII, the Gering formation is probably represented by a thin wedge of 

" t 

..8 Gray sand with J?ipyconcretions .. 

~ d 

-" 

~ 

~ 

$ " 

Volcanic ash ..... . 

e Pink clay . . . 

~ Volcanic ash .... . . . . . .... . . . 

FIG. 13.-Section of Gering and associated formations in Cedar Canyon, 8 miles wuthwest of Gering, Nebr. 

laminated sandstone, which is exposed on the south slope, but is absent to the north. 

In the buttes south of Gering the formation occurs in irregular masses, and for some 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. XXIV 

A. 

B. 

CHIMNEY ROCK, CHEYENNE COUNTY, NEBR. 

A , From the west, showing volcanic-ash bed; B , from th e east, Gering sandstone on Brul e clay (the horse is on 

a bed of volcanic ash). 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. XXV 

A. 

R. 

GERING FORMATION , LYING UNCONFORMABLY ON BRULE CLAY, CHEYE"{NE. 

COU NTY, NEBR. 

.A , With col"glomeratic beds, 4 miles northwe~t of Redington (the man 's hand is at the contact); B , 2 miles southwest of Chimney Rock. 
GEOLOGY WEST OE' ONE HUNDRED AND THIRD MERIDIAN. 35 

distance is not over 50 feet in thicknestl. lts relations in this vicinity are shown in 

fig. 9, at B and C. At B in this section the Gering· beds consist of sand and sanely 

clay, with streaks of conglomerate at their .base. 'fhere i,; a very abrupt change 

to Arikaree beds at their summit. The details of stratigTaphy at B are· shown in 

fig;. 10. 

At this exposure there is a bed of volcanic ash in the. base of the Gering 

formation, with alternations of sands and sandy days i1bove to a sharp unconformity 

at 4,390 feet. Above this unconformity are sands, pebbly at base, which appear to 

merge up into the .1\.xikaree beds. TheY: may, however, constitute . the upper 

member of the Gering formtttion. 

In the very prominent point in the northwe:st corner of T. 20, R. 55, 6 n)iles 

south-southwest of Gering, the formation attains its maximum development for this 

district, having rt thickness of 200 feet and ,the eomposition shown in fig. 11. 

E Gray sand with pipy concretions .... 

2 

~ 

~ 

" 

~ "C 

<I 

~ 

Fine gray sand: few :mwll con•cretion1;.~ 

Vukanie ash ................... . 

§ Pink clay ... 

Volcanic ash . _ ... 

Fw. 14.-Sectiou of Gerfng and associated fonnatious at the mouth of Cedar Canyon, 7 miles southwest of Gering, Nebr . 

. A. mile south of this exposure the Gering beds· have the character and relations 

shown in fig. 12, which illustrates the thinning to the south. 

The unconformity at 4,480 feet may be either in the Gering foi·mation, separating it into two members, or at the base of the Arikaree formation, here including 

coarse beds and a thin layer of nearly pme volcanic ash. West of this vicinity 

the formation again thins. rapidly, and ,on the north side of the upper part of Cedar 

Canyon it has the relations shown in tig. 13. 

One mile northeast of this exposure, in the high point at the mouth of Cedar 

Canyon, the formation is onlv doubtfully recognized, with, the relations shown in fig. 

14. In other plitces to the west and north for some distance the formation is either 

absent or very thin and not well characterized. . 

·ln the Scotts Bluff i·idge west of Gering the Gering formation has a thickness 
36 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

of 60 feet. It is finely exposed in the butte of which Scotts Bluff is the north face, 

where its relation:,; are as shown in fig. 18. Some of its features may also be seen 

in Pl. XXIX. Dome Rock . exhibits 50 feet of the Gering formation, capped by a 

small mass of Arikaree formation. In the vicinity of Signal Butte the Gering 

formation appear~'! to he represented by 60 feet of laminated dark-gray sands or 

soft sandstone lying unconformably on the Brule elay, the unconformity· being 

-~g g rnard wbite bed .... 

~ '"' ..... ) Stratified fl.and. . . { {!1.3~ l 1)nconforruity .. 

~ 

. 

~ "1 Plnl«•lny 

,_. "' . FIG. 15.-Seetion 111 Signal Butte, Scotts Bluff 

County, Nebr. 

strongly marked. At the top of the butte 

there is a cap of thin, hard, white calcareous 

deposit, which extends widely in the "~icinity. 

The relations are shown in fig. 15. · 

The Gering formation is developed in places 

north of Darrington with the relations shown 

in fig. 16. The thickness is 50 feet, and the 

·coarse basal beds lying uncomformably on the Brule clay arc finely exposed at several 

points. The formation also here contains a thin bed of volcanic ash near the top. 

Along the south side of the. ridge from Darrington to Ashford the formation is 

either absent or not characteristic. Near Funnel Rock the Arikaree beds lie uncomfonnably on the Brule clay, as shown in fig. 17. In the region north-northeast of 

Ashford the Gering formation is very distinct again for a few miles, especially 

bigh up in the canyons which are cut into the ridge. In two of these canyons the . 

. 

. ~ 

d 

E 

,£ Gray .sand~ with pipy concretions .. ~ 

~ 

2 

~ 

;;; 

.Ahruptelwnge ...........•.... 

~§!Sands with conglomt>rate tenses . . . { 

~~ CongJonlCrate.. . ................. . 

~ ~ Strati~ed sanUs.: ............... <0 { 

.... Vneonformity .......... ., ..... .. 

,;, 

d 

~ Pinlr eluy. 

E 

"' \'olcanie al'lh 6' ......•. 

FIG 16.-Sectiou of Gering and a"oeiatcdformations 2 miles northeast of Darrington, Nebr. 

outcrop is marked by ]arg.e springs. The relations in this vicinity are represented 

at D, E, and F in fig. 9 (p. 32): At D, high u~ a canyon, there is a fine exposure 

of 50 feet of coarse Gering bedH lying unconformably on Brule clay and fairly 

~harply sep~,Lmted from Arikarcc bedH. At E, farther down the canyon, similar 

relations are exhibited. At F, on the point at the mouth of the canyon, thCI;e 

is no trace of the. coarse beds; the fine sand, similar to that of the Arikarce deposits, 

but with smaller and more widely scattered concretions, lying directly on the Brule 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

AlllKAlti£E FOll./ltATJOS: 

Gray sand with dark-grav 

pipy concretions ....•. : .. :· 

GERISt~ FORMATIO:>O: 

Sand and clay ........... . 

Gray sn1ul ............ .. 

Pinkish sandy clny .. 

Sand and gran• I .... Uncotlfurrnitv Pinkish sandy d:i.y 

Uno.:onfurmity 

fiHULI': CLAY: 

Pink chy 

tn Limestone 

~:1nrly loam ... 

;\HifiAHh:li: JI<>R~1ATIO;>;: 

C.ray sands with dark-gray 

pipy o.:oucretion>~ 

Aq;:illaeenu~ f->:mds 

(l~:RJ:-><T l<"OID,IATIO:>O: 

Gray mnrls. 

Sands awl "'r:l\"ds Unconformity 

Hl~ULE CI.A\". 

Pink ;:lay .. 

A. 

D. 

AtUKAREE FOR:'.JATIO~·: 

While breccia ..• 

Sand ......•... 

Gr0y ~:~kcl-~;:~hp~~;':::n~~~~ ttons. 

San<IS feet 

GERl:-><~ ~-~::~~!l~~~:ge ......... . Light pinkish sancly clay .••• At1ruptchnnge ....... __ . Pinkishl'lanrly day, few small 

1;oncretions .•...•.•..•.... , 

Lil!ht rown-gray cross-bed- •le•l sands ................ . 

Unconformity .... _ ... __ 

Lig-ht- colored sandy clav 

merging down into finesarid 

:;~f::::::zJ•·•·· Uaur.g CLAY: 

l'inlt <;lay. 

ARIKAREE FOR:\IATION: 

(:ray sands with du.rk-gmy pipy t:ont.:retious .... 

GKRI:>O<~ I'OR~!ATIU:"': 

Argillao.:eouo; sand~ . 

Soft sanolston~ 

Sautl~ ... 

"\\"bite elu.y 3 feet 

Snfts:lnolstone ... 

Untonformity .... 

BRUI.E CJ,A \": 

l'ink clay. 

B. 

E. 

ARIKARKIC FOltMATIO:>O: 

Pal~-buf1' sand with pipv 

dark-b'Tay eoncrdioni'l •.. : 

Yokank nsh 5 feet_ (!) Li~ht--bnff s:U1<ls with 

small conaetious. 

GKRIN<; I<"ORMATHI;<;" 

Fine gray t~:~n;h1 

Um:onformil.~ 

BuUJ.K CJ,AY: 

Pink clay ...... . 

GKRI:->•; FO\t~!ATJOS: 

Gray H:IIHI!-1. 

\"ol.:anic ash •. Snll<l and ).:"ru.vel .. UtH.:onfonnity 

BRUI.Ii CLA\": 

J.'ink clay 

SECTIONS OF EXPOSURES SHOWING THE RELATIONS OF GERING AND ASSOCIATED FORMATIONS, CHEYENNE COUNTY, NEBR. 

c. 

F'. 

A. At Cnurthouse Rock; H, at Birdcage Gap; C, at Redington Gap; D. 4 m1les south-southeast of Chimney Rock; R, 3 miles south-sou~heast of Chimney Rock; )?, 1 mile south of Chimney Rock. 

PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. XXVI 
Ll. S. GEOLOGICAL SLIRVEY 

GKRI-'G l>"(•UMATJON: 

Sundstou~: ......•....••..•..•..••......•.•...............•..••.•. 

Old~oil (n 1i inch~---·· .••..•.•••......••••.. ······~·--·· ....... . 

ARIKAJUtK Fillt:OtAT!O!i: 

Gray sand with pipy cou- cr~:Uon~ .•....•••.•...... 

'fran~itwn 

(;Kit\1\l"l I'OllMATIO~: 

l'lnkil:lhsundl:l .... 

i:hUJI.Y. CLAY: 

l'ink clay ...•.......•..• 

A. 

c. 

Ht-:ULI:£ l:LAY: 

link cby 

H1:U1.11: CLAY: 

!'ink days, tltlll<!~· abu\"e ..... 

\'ulCu.llic:lsh Ofed ..... 

PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. XXVII 

B. 

D. 

SECTIONS OF EXPOSURES SHOWING THE RELATIONS OF GERING AND ASSOCIATED FORMATIONS FROM CHIMNEY ROCK TO CASTLE ROCK. 

A, At Chimney Rock; B, 3~ miles southwest of Chimney Rock; C, at Sheep Mount~in; D. at Castle Rock! 
GEOLOGY WEST OF ONE HUNDRED AND THIRD MERIDIAN. 37 

clay, with faint unconformity a-pparent. Farther east, at Castle Rock, in Banner 

County, and in the prominent point H- miles west of this rock, the identity of the 

formation is not satisfactorily established. The relations at the:;e localities are showti 

in sections IJ and E of Pl. XXVIII. In the bluffs on the south side of the ridge, 

. northeast of Redington, the Gering formation is again recognized. Its unconformity 

to the Brule clay is often finely exposed in this vici.nity, as shown in Pl. XXV, B. 

JmULE CLAY. 

This thick ma8s of sediment which' underlies the greater part of the region 

consists mainly of lll~I.SSive clay or a mixture of fine sand and clay, of pale flesh color, 

containing numerous fossil beds charaeteristie of the Oreodon series of the ·white 

River group. It is ;widely exposed in the valleys of North Platte River and 

~ • 

~ 

~ Gray sawlH with pipy concretion~ ... 

0 

2 

~ .:;:: Few concretions ....... . 

Un~onfor·mity ...... . 

llll}Jlll'e volcanic! a~ll R' 

~· 

~ l'inkd!tY ...................... . 

~ 

FIG. 17.-Section in vicinity of Funnel Rock, 1 mile north of Ashford, Nebr. 

Pumpkinseed Creek, extends along the lower portion of the northern slope of Pine 

. Ridge, and is bared in the narrow depression of Lodgepole Creek and Sidney Draw. 

In the valley of the North Platte it is often widely overlain by aliuvial depo::lits, and 

this also is the case to a less degree in the smaller valleys. Along the foot of Pine 

Ridge the formation is largely covered by wash and talus, and by a small amount of 

alluvium along White .River ·and its tributltries. The formation underlies all the 

high table-lands, where, as shown in the sections of Pl. XII, it i8 thickly covered 

by the later Tertiary deposits. North of Pine Ridge it has been deeply eroded, and 

beyond a narrow zone of outcrops of the underlying Chadron beds the Pierre clay 

succeeds as 'the surface formation." There are extensive exposures of the Brule clay 

in the northern face of Scotts Bluff, where, from the base of the overlying Gering 

beds to the river, there is a vertical interval of 500 feet of continuous outcrop, fl,nd 
38 G-EOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

the formation has a small additional thickness below the level of the river. (See 

Pis. XXX and XXXI.) Along the northern front of Pine Ridge the formation 

averages 600 feet in thickness, but beginning near Crawford it gradually thins to 

the east to about 350 feet in the vicinity of Chadron. In Round Top, just west of 

Adelia, there are 655 feet of Brule beds. 

;~.§ l Ahrup~ change. 

·E ~ Gray sand. s ...... , .. . 

6 E Volcanic ash .. . 

2 UnconfOrmity . 

,:, 

" " 

Volcauic ash ... 

Yokanic ash .. 

~ Pink elay ........... . 

;1 

FIG. 18.-Section of north face of Scotts Bluli. 

In the region southeast of Gering the Bmle formation contains a bed of coarse 

material which appears to extend several miles. It consists of coarse, cross-bedded sand 

·and conglomerate lying about 120 feet below the top of the formation .. The thickness 

varies from 10 to 80 feet; the thickest portion appearing in canyons and buttes 5 to 6 

miles south of Gering. The relations in this vicinity are illustrated in fig. 9. (p. 32), 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

AHtKAllKii FOR,\1A1'10."\, 

Purl! volcanic ush If> feet 

Gray s,uul wilh pipy coJL,:retions .•....•..••. 

(;J,;Ril'i<~ l-'I•HMATIO;'I;' 

Lamin:ltetls:tn.b, s.:moly an•l notlular .• 

BHUI,E CI,AY' 

l'iuk day 

\'ulc.:mie ash 

lhtULii: CLA\': 

Pink .-lay .•. 

D. 

AiUK,\ltJO: FOJUIATIOX: 

Gray ;;and. with pipy con- t;rdiom; 

• BRUJ.E CLAY: 

l'ink e!ay, nry sandy aliU\'< 

ARIKARE~: 1-"01!:\lliTlOX: 

I ;my fl:.lllli with }lipy 

cretions .. 

p) ']'hill heol uf white clay. 

BJWJ.J;: CLAY: 

l'inkish-;,rray Yery s:tnd~· 

day!!, becoming: JtJore 

clayey Loelow. 

Impure voleanie ash .. 

B. 

E. 

ARIKAltli:l<: F<>R~IATIO:\": 

Gray :o;aud with pipy con- :·:. 

cre!i•lllS ................ . 

l'iukbh ,.:llld_\' d:ty 

C:uarS<! sauols ..•.. 

BnuLI;: Gt •• \Y' 

J'ink t:by 

""'"'" .... .. ...... ·l 

ARlKAHii:J;; FO!t:'>IA1'IO:.·· 

(;ray ;.;aJl<l with J•ipy 

crdion~> .. 

Cong-lolLJerate .•...•....... 

ALrnpL change 

G~~:n1:.·r. t<<>RMATI<•:.·: 

Cuarse, huff, pehloly 

lJncollformit.'• .. : 

Sauol< fine "'"""'' """'""[ hduw ................... . 

""'" ,·oleaniea>h O~feo;t.l Unconformtt.y .......... . 

BllUl,H ('J.AY: 

\'olcank ash 4 feeL. 

l~inkclay 

PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. XXVIII 

c. 

F. 

·--------------' 

SECTJONS OF EXPOSURES SHOWING THE RELATIONS OF GERJNG AND ASSOCIATED FORMATIONS SOUTH AND SOUTHWEST OF LARISSA, NEBR. 

A, 2~ miles west-southwest of Larisssa; B, 3 miles southwest of Larissa; C, 2~· miles south-southwest of Larissa; D, 2 rniles west of Castle Rock, Banner Coun1y; E, at Castle Rock, Banner County; F, 3 miles south of Larissa. 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROCESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. XXIX ' 

NORTH FACE OF SCOTTS BLUFF. 

Bru le clay overlain by Gering and Arikaree formations. 
GlWLOGY WEST OF ONE HUNDRED AND THIRD .l\IERIDIAN. 39 

and one of the finest exposures is shown in Pl. XXXII, B. There are other 

exuosures north of Larissa and northeast of Chimney and Castle rocks, as shown in 

§ 

'G 

• E .8 Gray sand with pipy concretions 

1: " 

a 

~ 

Unconformity . ........... . 

Pure Yolcanic ash ......... . 

:Pinkclays .... ..................... . 

Volcanic ash .............. . 

Light buff-g~ay clays ............ . 

FIG. 19.-Scetion from Round Top to Adelia station, Sioux County, Nebr. 

sections A and ]) of Pl. XXVII. In the area near Larissa and south of Gering 

there is near its base a thin bed of very compact limestone, wpich again outcrops 

north of Sunflower. 
.. 

40 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OF WES'l'ERN NEBRASKA. 

In the badlands about Adelia station on the Burlington and Missouri River 

Railroad there are extensive exposures of the Brule and associated formations. (See 

Pls. XXXIII and XXXIV and fig. 19.) 

This section closely resembles the typical section in the Big Bad Lands in South 

Dakota, but appears to include some higher beds. The alternate greenish' and 

pinkish clays with brown nodular layers lying on the Chadron sands arc similar to the 

Oreodon series and yield many of the same mammalian remains. The sandstone next 

above probably represents the Metan1ynodon series, and in it was found a fragment 

of a tooth, probably of jUetamynodon. The overlying clays can be less definitely 

~ "l ~-~ 

~ci Gray sand withpipyconcretions. 

-.::S 

<~ 

ci 

0 

::; 

• s . . ~ Sands, cros~~bedded nnd pebbly below 

" c 

·~ 

~ Unconformity ...... ".' ......... .. 

Volcanic ash .................... , ....... . 

.:. • 

~ Pinkc~ay ........................... . 

~ 

gl . ~'g ""' Pa1e-greensandso•····o···········"· . 

.c• .o"' . 

·FIG .. 20."-Section at Chadron, Nebr. 

correlated, especially those toward the top, which I believe are higher than the 

highest beds represented in the Big Bad Lands. They contain two beds of volcanic 

ash, the upper one 12 feet thick, of nearly pure material, in fiat, glassy scales, not so 

vesicular: as usual. Along the eastern extension of Pine Ridge the intermediate beds, 

those extending hom 4,000 to 3, 725 feet in the Round Top section, soon thin out, and 

the Chadron formation is overlain by the flesh-colored clay, with its volcanic ash 

layer near the top. A seetion at Chadron is given in fig. 20. 

CHADRON FORMATION. 

'l.'his basal formation of the Tertiary series outcrops in a narrow zone along the 

lower slopes nOt·th of Pine Ridge, just outside the margin of the overlying Brule 
U . S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. XXX 

BADLANDS AT FOOT OF SCOTTS BLUFF; GENERAL VIEW, 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. XXXI 

BA DLANDS AT FOOT O F SCOTTS BLUFF; NEAR VI EW. 
GEOLOGY WEST Ol<' ONE HUNDRED AND THIRD MERIDIAN. 41 

clays. There is also a small area of outcrop in the valley of North Platte River in 

the vicinity of Caldwell and Mitchell. The deposits have heretofore been known as 

the. "Titanotheriuin beds," from the frequent occurrence of remains of several 

species of a large mammal which has been. named Ti,tanoth.erium. As the large 

bones and peculiar teeth of this animal are very distinctive features, an illustration 

of a skeleton is reproduced in Pl. XXXV. The p1;edominant material of the formation is sandy clay of light greenish-gray color, usually with coarser beds at the 

bottom, including deposits of gravels often several feet thick. The beds above these 

gmvels are often of bright dark-red color, notably in the region about Adelia. The 

thickness of the formation varies from 30 to 60 feet in the outcrops along th~? foot 

of Pine Ridge. It thickens eonsiderably in the vicinity of Adelia, where there are 

included some masses of dark-gray and b.u:ff sandstone of coarse texture. At many 

• points around its outer margin the Chadron sands may be seen lying on the irregular, black, oi· generally rusty surface of the Pierre shale. 

LARAMIE FORMATION. 

The Laramie formation is exposed in an area of considerable extent in Goshen 

Hole, which extends for a short distance eastward into Nebraska on the north side 

of Horse Creek west of Caldwell and on a branch of that creek 5 miles southwest of 

Caldwell. The rock is a soft greenish-buff to brownish sandstone'. Its surface is 

irregular; to the north it is .overlain by Chadron beds and to the south it rises into 

the base of the Brule clays. Doubtless it extends for some distance east, but its 

eastern margin w~s not ascertained. 

PIERRE CLAY. 

The entire regiol}. to which this report relates is underlain by the Pierre clay, a 

thick mass of dark-colored elays or shales constituting the nppei· member of the 

Cretaceous formations in some portions of the Plains. Possibly under the southwest corner of Nebraska the Tertiary formations are underlain by the edge of 

the Lai·amie formation-a series of sandstones higher in the Cretaceous-but of this 

there is at present no evidence. The Pierre shale outcrops in the northern portion 

of Sioux and Dawes counties, as sho\~n in Pl. XI. The surface of the formation 

rises somewhat with the general upward slope of its beds toward the Black Hills 

uplift, and it is exposed by the erosion which has· removed the Tertiary formations 

over the lowlands extending from the valleys of vVhite River and Hat Creek to the 

foot of the Black Hills. The dark shale gives rise to a rolling region of scant vegetation arid poor water supply. Exposures are frequent, and the dark-yellow or 

rusty surfaces due to the oxidation of the iron pyrites in the shale are characteristic 

features of the area. 

Distinctive fossils of numerous marine mulluscan ·species are abundant in the 
42 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

Pierre clay. The fossils arc often preserved in eoneretions of gniy siliceous matter 

of lenticular form, which abound in the upper portion of the formation. The precise thickness of the Pierre shales is not known, but it probably exceeds 1,200 feet. 

NIOBRARA LIMESTONE. 

The Pierre shale is underlain by the Niobrara limestone, but this formation does 

not reach the surface in the portion of Nebraska west of the one hundred and third 

meridian. As, however, it would be reached by deep borings fo~· artesian water, 

some of its characteristics should be pointed out. Its thickness is about 50 feet. It 

consists mainly of massive dark-gray chalk or soft limestone, which weathers to a, 

buffor light-cream color when exposed to the atmosphere. The formation can be 

readily recognized by the very distinctive fossil Ost1·ea congestci, which is· nearly 

always present in abundance in thin, hard layers. In order to aid the well driller in 

identifying this formation in borings, an illustration of this fossil is. introduced in 

Pl. XXXVI. 

BENTON l<'OHMATION. 

Underlying the Niobrara limestone and abruptly separated from it are the Benton 

shales, which have a thicknes~ of 1,500 feet. They eontain thin layers of sandstoi1e 

and limestone; one of the latter, about 900 feet above the Dakota sandstone, is filled 

with the Inoceram1ts shown in Pl. XXXVI. The formation lies frtr below the surface 

along the South Dakota line, but outcrops extensively in the vicinity of Edgemont, 

having the relations shown in fig. 21. 

DAKOTA SANDSTONE. 

·This is the water-bearing sandstone of South Dakota and north~astern Nebraska, 

and it underlies all the region to which this report relates. It ,is a gray or brownish 

sand roek, oecurring in thick beds, with intcrc,alrttcd lenses of shale or clay and 

oeeasionally thin scams of coal. Its relations in the ~orthern part of the area are 

shown in fig. 21 and Pl. X. Its lower beds are of Lower Crctaeeous age. 

VOLCANIC ASU. 

In studying the geology of this region it was found that several formations 

contained extensive deposits of volcanic ash. Some of this material was found in the 

Chadron· formation; two very wide;;prcad beds oecur in the Brule elay; lenses of the 

ash ~re often included in the Gering forn;tation; and there is a general admixture of 

ash as well as a number of thick beds of it in the Arikaree forrnation. So far as 

observed it is rare in the Ogalalla formation. In the ecntral and eastern portion of 

the State it occurs mainly in the lower portion of the loess. 

The ash deposits are usually more or less mixed with clay or sand, but there are 

many beds in which the deposits are thick and pure. They promise to have considerable commerci:iJ value, mainly for polishing powdei·. 
U, $. GEOLOGICAL SU RVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL, XXX II 

.A. CASTL E ROCK, SCOTTS BLUFF CO U NTY, NEBR., FROM TH E EAST, SHOW IN G BED OF 

VO L CA NI C ASH NEAR THE FOOT OF THE SLO PE. 

B. LENS OF COARSE MATER IAL IN BRULE FORMATION, 4 MILES SO UTH OF 

G ERING, NEBR. 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. XXXIII 

BADLANDS OF BRULE FORMATION, WEST OF ADELIA, SIOUX COUNTY, NEBR.; LOOKING NORTHWEST. 

( From photograph by E. H. Barbour, University of Nebraska.) 
UNDERGROUND WATERS. 43 

The most persistent layer is in the Brule clay, at an average distance of about 

70 feet below its top, in the ridge next south of North Platte Ri,Ter. This bed is 

sh~wn in Pl. XXIV and PI: XXXII, A. A lower bed, usually much less pure, 

occurs from 80 to 100 feet below the upper one. On the north :-0ide of Pine Ridge 

these two horizons are recognized in some of the higher bedii ·in Sowbelly Canyot1 

and at Round Top and near Chadron, as shown in figs. 19 and 20. The volcanic 

ash oceurring in the Gering formation is usually restrieted in extent and variable 

in relations. It is, however, often exceptionally pure. 

The Arikaree formation eontains a sprinkling of ash almost throughout its 

extent. In some of the blu1l's southwest of Gering a thickness of 100 feet of sandy 

elays of this formation was observed, which contains a fairly large proportion of 

ash. In the high isolated hntte 3 miles west by south from Larissa there is a 15-foot 

bed of nearly pure ash, with pipy concretions scattered through it, in the midst of 

the Arikarce formation. In Wildcat Mountain beds of ash were found at intervals 

nearly to the cap of Ogalalla fo~·mation. The formation contains a large admixture 

of ash in the vicinity of Fort Robinson and again !tt Round Top, near Adelia, as 

shown in fig. 19 (p. 39). 

The ash in these formations was probably derived from volcanoes in the Rocky 

Mountain region, for there is no evidence of Tertiary volcanoes in the vicinity. 

The at?h was undoubtedly borne orr the winds and deposited in the waters which 

laid down the sevetal Tertiary formations. When the ash came in large volume, or 

there was very little other sediment, pure deposits resulted; but ordinarily there was 

considerable admixture of the fine sand and clay. 

UNDERGROUND WATERS. 

GENERAL CONDITIONS. 

The relations of underground waters in this region present a variety of features. 

ln many localities there are large supplies at moderate depths, and in other places 

the amount of waters in reach of the average farmer is Ro small as seriously to 

interfere with the settlement of areas of considerable extent. This has been 

particularly the case where large volumes of water were needed for cattle. The 

greatest difficulty in obtaining wateT has been in the area of the Brule clay back 

from the rivers and in' the region underlain by Pierre clay. In the flats adjoining 

the river in Platte Valley and in Lodgepole Valley water supplies are usually 

obtained in wells from 10 to 40 feet i.n depth. On the table-lands on both sides of 

Lodgepole Valley waters are obtainable in large yolume from wells from 150 to 

300 feet deep, the depth increasing gradually westward. In Niobrara Valley supplies 

of water are obtained from shallow wells in the narrow strip of alluvial deposits 

near the river, and farther back on the table-land plenty of water is found at 

depth:,; varymg from 50 and 100 feet on the lower slopes to 300 feet in some of the 
44 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OJ!' WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

highest areas to the northwest. In the sand hills water accumulates in basins at 

moderate distances below the surface, so that shallow wells ordinarily obtain 

satisfactory supplies. 

Along the outer edge of the Brule clay area north of Pine Ridge water is usually 

found in the underlying Chadron sand;;. In Pl. XXXVII are shown the depths to 

water supplies in the western Nebraska region, based on observations of the water 

level in wells and springs and determinations of the geologic relations of the waterbearing formations. 

WATER HOlUZONS. 

In the alluvial formations along Platte, Niobrara, and White rivers and Lodgepole, Pumpkinseed, Snake, and Hat creeks, and some of their branches, the water 

supply constitutes an underflow. Along· the Platte this underflow is of large volume, 

but in some ar€as the water is somewhat alkaline. In the Pumpkinseed Valley at 

some localities,, and in the greater portion of the White River and Hat Creek valleys, 

where they traverse the Pierre shales, these water supplies are often unsatisfactory 

both in quantity and in quality. 

The next horizon is at the base of the Ogalalla formation, which supplies water 

for many wells on the table-lands on both sides of the Lodgepole Valley at depths 

varying from 100 to 300 feet. The volume of water appears to be large at nearly all 

localities. At some places the waters are obtained high up in the formation, but the 

principal supplies arc in the basal beds. At many points along the northern margin 

of the table-land these waters flow out into the canyons as springs of greater or less 

force, of which the most notewm;thy are those on Greenwood, Middle, Hackberry, and Bighom creeks, in Lawrence Fork Canyon, and at Gabe, Long, and 

Duggers springs. 

The A.rikaree formation is a general reservoir for water, ,vhich is nearly everywhere available in the table-lands lying between the valley of North Platte River and 

fhe crest of Pine Ridge. In sonic areas it is necessary to sink wells to the base of 

the formation, where the materials are somewhat coarser than those higher up, but 

ordinai'ily the higher beds yield satisfactory supplies. These waters flow out at the 

surface in >iprings of greater or less magnitudB in many canyons along the front of 

Pine Ridge; at a few widely scattered points in the Niobmra Valley, notably at 

Coyote Spring and at Royvil!e; in the 8nakc Creek Valley, at Point of Rock 8pring 

and Mud Spring·; and along the north slope of the Platte Valley, at the spring near 

the head of Sheep Creek and the springs near the heads of Red "Willow and Indian 

creeks. 

The Gering formation contains water throughout its area, but it does not appear 

to be reached by many wells. Numerous springs ori the ridge south of North Platte 

River flow from this formation at the surface of the Brule clay. Along the front of 

Pme Ridge there are !L number of springs which flow ont of these beds, and possibly 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. XXXIV 

"TOADSTOO L PAR K" IN BADLANDS NORTHW EST OF ADELIA, SIOUX COUNTY, NEBR. ( BRULE FORMATION ). 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 Pl. XXXV 

TITANOTHERIUM ROBUSTUM. 

One twenty.third (..fl) natural size. 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. XXX\ I 

T YPICAL FOSSILS OF NIOBRARA CHALK AND GR EEN HORN LIMESTONE. 

A, Ostrea congesta Conrad; B, Inoceramus lab1atus Sch loth. 
UNDERGROUND W .ATERS. 45 

some of the deeper wells on the summit of Pine Ridge obtain their water from this 

horizon, but ordinarily ample supply is reached at a less depth in the overlying 

Arikaree formation. 

The Brule clay immediately underlies a wide area of the high slopes of the North 

Platte and Pumpkinseed valleys and yields water supplies to many wells. It is 

known as "hardpan" to the well drillers. In most cases, however, the volume of the 

water is small, and its quality is often unsatisfactory. Numerous abandoned houses 

in these valleys usually indicate that prospective settlers have been unable to obtain 

water supplies at moderate depths fr-om the Brule clay. 'Vhere water occurs it is in 

crevices and fissures, which traverse the clay at moderately' frequent intervals, but 

the volume of water depends on many factors, and there is seldom a good chance to 

obtain a large sripply. In the area north of Pine Ridge the wells usually penetrate 

through the Br:ule clay into the underlying Chadron sands, which almost invariably 

contain fairly large volumes of water. It is a source of supply to a number of 

farmers and ranches. The water is ncit always of satisfactory quality, and in the 

wells at Adelia and Crawford it has been found unsuitable for locomotives. This 

formation underlies the Brule clays in the Platte and Pumpkinseed valleys, and 

probably would often yield water there to wells a few hundred feet in depth. Some 

years ago a well was sunk at Gering to a depth of 331 feet, which obtained a promising flow of water; probably from the Laramie sandstone, which underlies the Chadron 

formation. Owing to the small size of the pipe and. to accidents in boring, the 

well did not continue to flow, and clogged up so that it was a failure~ As water 

supplies are particularly scant in the region about Gering and in the valleys to the 

south, it ie very unfortunate that this boring was not given. a fair trial. At Harrisburg, on the south slope of Pumpkinseed Valley, a. boring has recently been made 

to a depth of 7\-lO feet without obtaining a flow. Judging from the small samples of 

the horings which were seen, the well passed through the Chadron sands and entered 

the Laramie formation for several hundred feet, but it did not obtain a sufficient 

supply of water. It is known that the edge of the Laramie.formation extends into 

southwestern Nebraska un4er the Chadron sands, and it should be expected to yield 

a water supply that would rise to an altitude of about 4,500 feet. In the underlying 

Pierre shale there ai·e no chances for water. In the area in which this formation is 

at the surface, in northern Sioux and Dawes counties, great difficulty has been 

experienced in obtaining water supplies for local use, and the water found has 

generally proved to be of unsatisfactorJ'quality. 

DEEP-SEATED WATERS. 

In the older formations which underlie Nebraska there are widespread sheets of 

permeable deposits which carry large volumes of water. In the region to the west 
46 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

these depo'sits lie at great depth, and many of the higher lands are probably above 

the level to which the waters would rise to afford surface flows. Owing to the failure 

of any boring in the central and western portion of the State to reaeh the deep-seated 

water-bearing beds, there is 'Jack ·of definite knowledge as to their depth, but there 

can be. no doubt of their presence. The section constituting Pl. X illu~:>trates the 

general relations of the two principal deep water-bearing formations-the Dakota 

sandstone and the Carboniferous and underlying limestones. In eastern South 

Dakota the Dakota sandstone yields to many wells large volumes of excellent water 

under high pressure. In eastern Nebraska, where the formation approaches the 

surface, it is also the source of water supply, at first to welb of moderate depth and 

then to innumerable springs. The Carboniferous and underlying formations yield 

water to numerous wells between 650 and 1,500 feet deep in eastern Nebraska and 

Iowa. These waters pass into the formations along the foothills of the Black Hills and 

the Rocky Mountains at altitudes of from 3,000 to 6,000 feet in greater part, and 

- FIG. 21.-Section from Black Hills to Pine Ridge. 

have considerable pressure and head far to the east. This pressure and head, however, gradually decrease as the form:itrions reach or approach the surface, the water 

then being free to escape. The waters in the Dakota sandstone lose thei1· head 

entirely in eastern Nebraska, where the formation outcrops. The waters in the 

underlying Carboniferous limestones and older formations retain a moderate amount 

of head throughout Nebraska. Some of the factors bearing on the occurrence of 

these deep underground waters are shown in Pl. XXXVIII, an~ in Pl. XXXIX are 

shown some of the conditions of occurrence of the waters in the Carb'oniferous 

and underlying formations in the vicinity of Omaha, Neb~·. It will be seen in 

Pl. XXXIX that the head Is i·elatively constant near 1,100' feet above sea level over 

a wide urea about Omaha, but there is u slight ri"e to the west even in a few miles. 

At Lincolri it is 1,210 feet above sea level. l'he increase of head and pressure to the 

west and northwest. is gradual, for the distance is great, but the amount becomes 

large us the Black Hills and Rocky Mountain zones of intal-,e ai'e approached. In 

PI. XXXVIII figures are given showing the altitudes along these zones and along 
U. S . GEOLOG!CAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO.I7 PL.XXXVII 

104° ------~· 

MAP SliOv\rJNG DISTRIB.UTION OF UNDERGROUND WATERS IN N:EBRASKA 

'~EST OF THE l03n NIERIDIAN 

Contours .~e erali'l.ed from HH\p!> 

U.S.G~•o ogicnl Sl.lcvey ----~ 

BY N. H. DAR.'J'ON 

Scale 15 

Con.tou s apprCIXimatod rt·om ... ------- --- rt..HJeva1s W\d barom.eLer· ~aact uSs 

20 25 mil<ls 0 lO 6 

~~~~~~--------~----------~-------- --------~--------~ 6 

Contour intcrvullOOfeot 

Wutor 

~ 100 to 200 feet rleep Watc1• 

C::J 

200 r.o 300 r~al deep Wa.ter300 ~ 1.o350 feol. deep 

\Vnter wioh in 25 ~ of Uw W<• ter 25 to 10 0 r.eel deop 

· ni'~OC() inulluvial doposits [ _____ __. 

Snnd hills wiih wu.teJ' us uttllY 

witbin'25 oo 50 teet or tho s uo·fnoo 

II:BJI Re~ion ofBt'lllt! clay . .in pul'luWl'· 

lailt by ttllu\>iul stuo<hs. Wat.e1· in owe vi cos lturd pRU quJ.tntily 

anrl deplhs \'\Uin:bl e 

Rogiozo 

-

of' Pierre 8hale1water HttppJiet> l>l'~nty ltlld oflim of bnd illlt~y 

------<-'-'----•:':. Stre(J.Ills dey orunde1-ground in summer 

J ULIUS BIEN 6 CO. ~ NV. 

[ __ _=] 

Steel! slopes and cnnvons pr edominntlng 
UNDERGROUND WATERS. 47 

the outcrop areas east, which will afford some idea of the head to be expected in the 

intermediate region. In the diagram, fig·. 22, there is shown a piec~ of physical 

appamtus which illustrates the gradient of head between a leak .on the one hand and . 

the source of pressure on the .other, representing· closely the relations which have 

been found to exist in the South Dakota artesian basin and probably prevail in a 

measure also in central and eastern Nebraska, where the head of the deeper-seated 

wat'ers diminishes eastward. 

· Data are not sufficiently definite as yet for a precise determination of this gradient 

of head across \Vestern Nebraska, but it is apparetit that in some of the valleys westward the heaJ is probably higher than the altitude of the land, so that there are 

prospects for surface flows. 

In order to reach the deep-seated waters in western Nebraska it is necessary to 

penetrate the Tertiary formations, the Pierre clay, the Niobrara limestone, and the 

Benton shale, to the Dakota sandstone, which should be expected to yield a large 

---

---

FIG. 22.-Diagram of llJlparatus illustrating the <lcclivity of head of liquids flowing from It reservoir 

supply of excellent water. An attempt was made to reach this. horizon in a deep 

boring at Chadron some years ago. A depth of 1,100 feet was attained, when the 

boring was abandoned owing to great difficulty in penetrating the Pierre shale. 

More recently an attempt has been made at Ardmore by the Burlington and Missouri 

River Railroad, which attained a depth of 1,500 feet apparently without reaching 

the bottom of the Upper Cretaceous shales. These shales can be penetrated only by 

skillful well drillers, and it is necessary to begin with ca~ing 12 or 14 inches in 

diameter at the top, as the size will have to be reduced occasio~ally as the bori.ng 

progresses. The depth to the Dakota sandstone at Crawford will probably prove to 

be 2,000 feet, and in the valley of North Platte River the amount may be somewhat 

more. There is possibility of obtaining a flow in these localities, although the altitude is somewhat greater than that of the Dakota sandstone outcrops along the southern margin of the Black Hills. It is to be expected that the pt:essure of water in 

the Dakota sandstone will increase to the southwest, in the direction of the Rocky 

Mountains. 
48 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY 0]' WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

Underlying the Dakota sandstone, with a series of gray and red sandstoneA 

intervening, are the limestones of Carboniferous age, which contain water in considerable volume and with somewhat greater head than the waters in the Dakota 

sandstone. These are the same beds as those yield~ng flows in the .Missouri Valley 

about Omaha, and there is fair reason to believe that they would prove a satisfactory 

source of water supply in other portions of Nebraska. 

SPRINGS. 

Several of the water-bearing formations reach the surface along the valley 

slopes, where their outcrop is marked by the presence of springs. The locations of 

the greater number of these springs are shown in Pl. XXXVII. The Arikaree 

formation in the high area north of the valley of Platte River supplies numerous 

springs, notably along the norphern front of Pine Ridge. The basal beds of 

· the Ogalalla formation also yield springs in the canyons south of the valley 

of Pumpkinseed Creek and along both sides of the valley of Lodgepole Creek. 

The most extensive series of springs is along the north front of Pine Ridge, at the 

base of the Arikaree formation and from the ~nderlying Gering sands. All of the 

larger canyons contain springs of considerable volume, often at a succession of levels. 

Sowbelly Canyon is particularly favored in this respect, but the other valleys, from 

Jim Creek to Chadron Creek, also have good water supplies from these sources. 

Even on Round Top there is a fine spring· just above the top of the Brule clay badlands. In the Brule clay area springs are rare and the volume of water is small. 

In the underlying Chadron beds there is more or less water at all points,. which 

gives rise to seeps and springs along the outcrop zone of these beds north of Pine 

Ridge. In the Pierre shale region, next northward, springs are rare, superficial in 

origin, small in volume, and usually highly mineralized with iron, gypsum, or 

alkalies. 

Along the Niobrara Valley there arc occasional springs, mainly in the immediate 

vicinity of the river. Whistle Creek practically heads in Coyote Springs, at an 

altitude of 4,520 feet, in the center ofT. 27, R. 53. The more important springs 

along the northern side. of the valley of Platte River are East Spring, Spottedtail 

Spring, Wind Spr~ng, Winter Spring, the springs near the head of Sheep Creek, and 

those at the headwaters of Red Willow and Indian creeks. They are derived from 

the lower portions of the Arikaree formation, except the Spottedtail and Winter 

springs, which emerge from alluvium in valley bottoms. . . 

In the ridge between Platte River and Pumpkinseed Creek there are numerous 

small springs at the heads of some of the larger canyons which yield excellent water. 

Their distribution is shown in Pl. XXXVII. The water is derived mainly from the 

Gering. sands at their contact with the Brule clay. 
-

V{esternoo r.r.:ups ofDalrota sandstone 

aud underl.)·"lg sedimentary formations 

. (wnter~beat lgbeds) 

Wale f. shed of "T'aina~e Which crosses 

westernout~~ofDakotas.s.and 

underlying sedim..,1taryformat.icins 

/ 

Eastern outcrops of L.~Utsa:rtOsh:~ne 

Eastern outcroP of Car'boni!l:.. 1u!t 

Explored portion of 

Dakota artesian area "'\ 

Contour interval 1000 feel 

(above2000 feet) 

Some special eleva~ns are 

given in rwu-es 

· co'"NT)UR MAP OF UPPER MISSOURI RIVER REGION 0 SHO~NGFACTORS BEARING ON PROSPECTS FOR DEEP UNDERGROUND WATERS · 

. ~,:.-· .: · BYN.H.DARTON 1898 . 

Scale 50 2!> 0 50 100 mo 200 250 300miles '--- --" 

/ 
SPRINGS. 49 

The Pumpkinseed Valley is excavated entirely in the Brule clay, and its lower 

springs are derived from the alluvial deposits in the valley. This is also the case 

with springs on Willow Creek and Middle Creek. In the canyons along the north 

front of the high table-larid south of Pumpkinseed Creek there are numerous 

springs, which yield moderate amounts of water, mainly from the ba~e of the 

Arikaree formation, and, where this deposit is absent, from the base of the Ogalalla formation. These springs are known as Gabe Spring and Long Spring southwest of Harrisburg and Duggers Spring south of Courthouse Rock. 

There are a number of springs along the valley of Lawrence Fork, notably 

one 2 miles south of Redington, which yielus. a large flow of excellent water. 

This flow, however, sinks ·east of Redington and reaches Pumpkinseed Creek 

underground. 

FIG. 23.-Jdeal section to illustrate some characteristic features of springs in western Nebrask11. 

In Lodgepole Valley springs are very rare except at points where the creek 

itself, having sunk into the alluvial materials in the bottom of the. valley, comes 

out again to flow on the surface for some distance. The best-known spring of 

this creek is at the "Spring farm," just east of Bronson. Two small springs in 

Sidney Draw furnish a moderate amount of water. 

The springs in this region generally occur under two conditions, which are 

illustrated in fig. 23. On the left-hand side of the section there is shown the 

typical spring flowing out of sands, A, at their surface outcrop in a canyon or 

at the base of high lands. The water gathers from rainfall at a greater or less 

distance away and sinks underground into. permeable beds,. through which it 

travels to emerge as a spring at lower levels. There are many cases, particularly 

in arid and semiarid regions, where the volume of a rivulet or stream is so small 

that aftei· running over the surface for some distance the water will ·sink into 

the coarse materials which usually lie in the bottom of a valley, as at B. It 

may then continue as an underflow and emerge in places as a spring of the type 

shown at C, in the middle of the section in fig. 23. This occurs frequently in 

the region, and is the nature of some of the low-level springs above described. · 

14478-No. 1'7-03--4 
50 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

STREAMS. 

NORTH PLATTE RIVER. 

This stream ~raverses the central portion of the area and, although it is shallow 

during the greater portion of the yeai', carries a relatively large body of water. Its 

flow is subject to seasonal variations, ranging from a wide, deep torrent in late spring 

and the first month of summer to a shallow, irregular network of streams flowing 

among sand bars in the later summer and autumn. It has been estimated that at 

Gering the North Platte drainage area is 24,340 square miles; at Camp Clarke about 

24,830 square miles; and at North Platte 28,517 square miles. The details of river 

measurements at these three points are given in vVater-Supply- and Irrigation Paper 

. No. 15, on pages 84, 85, and 86, respectively, and the results of computations of 

discharge on pages 308 to 310 of Part IV of the Nineteenth Annual Report. Reference should also be made to the data given in Part IV of the Eighteenth Annual 

Report, on pages 153 to 158, inclusive, and in Bulletin No. 140, on pages 99 to 102. 

Estimated monthly discharge of North Platte River at Camp Clarke, Nebraska. 

Date. ~Inximum. "Minimum. 

1896.,. Secon<ljeet. . Secondjeet. 

June 28-30 ............................... · 4, 100 3,102 

July 1-31 ................................ . 2,386 977 

August 1-31 ............ : . ............... . 1,316 628 

September 1-30 .......................... . 1, 186 738 

October 1-31.............................. 1, 290 875 

November 1-8 .... :. . . . . . . .. .. . .. .. . . . . . .. .1, 238 706 

1897. 

January ................................. . 

February ................................ . 

1\'larch ................................... . 

ApriL .................................... . 

May .................................... . 

June .................................... . 

July .................................... . 

August .................................. . 

September ............................... . 

October ................................. . 

2,404 

2,404 

2,223 

8,390 

10,540 

11,400 

4,305 

2,042 

580 

580 

2,042 

1,567 

450 

1,567 

6,885 

4,520 

930 

580 

400 

350 

Mean. 

Second-feet. 

3,508 

1,554 

924 

939 

1,008 

1,091 

2,287 

2,253 

1, 299 

3,649 

8,688 

7,401 

2,147 

1,066 

492 

484 

November................................ . .. .. . . . . . . .. .. . . . .. a 500 

December ........................................ ·.. . .. . . . . . . . a 500 

u Approximate. 

A large volume of the water is taken out of the river at intervals in Scotts 

Bluff and Cheyenne counties by the variom; irrigation canals, so that the reports at 
PL . XXXIX 

.<\rea of flaw from ,,·ells 

565· 1.500 !\.deep 

Area in which water surl"ace is more than 100ft. deep below 

ground in wells 750·1600ft.deep 

CONTOUR MAP OF OMAHA AND VICINITY SHOWING RELATIONS OF ARTESIANWATER 

B YN. H .DARTON 18 9 8 

SCALE 

1;..,=-~b-=o"""';...--- ...t,=====~--~---ih== =d tniles 

.JU U US ~lEN &.i:C. LITH.N .Y. 
STREAMS. 51 

Gering and Camp Clarke do not indicate the total volume of water which enters the 

State from the west. It should be bome in mind also that under the bed of the 

river there is considerable thickness of coarse sand containing an underflow of which 

the volume is far greater than that flowing on the surface 'in dry we~ther. 

North Platte River receives a number of minor branches between the mouth of 

Pumpkinseed Creek and the Wyoming line. They head in the high ridge to the 

south and in the edge of the high table-land on the north. With the exception of 

Horse Creek; their sm·facc waters do r~ot extend to the river, and some of them 

usually are entirely dry to their heads. There is, however, generally a small 

underflow through the coarse materials in their beds. The largest volumes of water 

nrc from the north, in Dugout, Ihdian, Red Willow, Winter, Spottedtail, and Sheep 

creeks. These all .head in living springs high up in the canyons, but the waters run 

only a short distance and sink into the coarse materials, where their volume as 

underflows is probably not large. Very little water flows out of the ridge extending 

from Courthouse Rock to the headwaters of Kiowa Creek, and except in the heads 

of a few canyons where there are springs the valleys are dry and appear to have 

but scant underflow. Horse Creek carries a moderate volume of water from some 

high ridges in V.'yoming. 

PU:IHPKINSEED CREEK. 

The wide valley of Pumpkinseed Creek is traversed by a small stream which 

heads in the northwest portion of Banner County, in springs and seeps which gather 

considerable volume in the vicinity of Ashford. Additional supplies are received to 

the east, but the stream increases in size very gradually. It enters North Platte 

River near Lapeer. Some gagings made near'its mouth were as follows: July 26, 

1894, 17.1 feet; June 28, 1896, 22:2 feet. 

The stream has numerous branches, but these contribute only surface water 

during the more rainy portion of the year. They nearly all have underflows of small 

volume, for their beds consist of gravels and sands into which the water sinks to the 

"hardpan" floor, and, moving slowly under ground, adds materially to the volume 

of the underflow of the main creek. The principal affluent is Lawrence :Fork, which 

contains a considerable volume of water in Ts .. 17 and 18, R 52, but this water 

finally sinks during the summer and flows underground for 2 miles to join the main 

creek near Redington. The other branches-Greenwood, Hackberry, and Bighorn 

creeks, Indian Springs, and 'Willow Creek-all contain some water in the upper 

portions of their valleys, but this water sinks into the coarse material of the valleys 

before it reaches Pumpkinseed Creek. The branches from the north are dry coulees 

in greater part. They conbin water from very small springs in the vicinity of 

their beads. 
GEOLOGY .AND HYDROGRAPHY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

LODGEPOLE CREEK. 

The waters of Lodgepole Creek rise in Wyoming and, gradually gaining volume, 

enter Nebraska with a flow which, in August, 1895, "\Vas found to be 3.5 cubic feet a 

second. At about the same time the creek w.as found to flow 4 cubic feet a second 

at the north-south line between sees. 34 and 35, T. 15, R. 57. The volume varies 

greatly from point to poiJit, but there appears to be a good underflow. For portions 

of its course the entire volume of the stream is diverted into irrigation ditches. In 

summer the creek becomes perfectly dry from the vicinity of sec. 28, T. 15, R. 54, 

for about 12 miles, to a point near the south line of sec. 4, T. 14, R. 52, where the 

water again appears, running 2t cubic feet a second at first, and then at a dam onehalf mile below 4 cubic feet a second. There are in this vicinity many short ditches 

which take all or the greater portion of the water and leave the C'l'eek dry below the 

dam in theSE. t sec. 14, T. 14, H. 5L It continues dry through sec. 13 and nearly 

through sec. 19, but ncar the east line of sec. 19 the water again rises to the ~urface 

and flows 2 cubic feet a second for a short distance., Then the creek is dry nearly to 

sec. 36, T. 14, R. 50, where there is a flow of about one-half a second-foot, w~ich is 

cJiverted into irrigation ditches . 

. All these measurements were made in August, 1895, by Mr. Adna Dobson, as 

given in the first report of the State board of irrigation for 1895 and 1896. A 

measurement of the Lodgepole made at Kimball by Mr. Y ~ungfelt on J nne 26, 1896, 

indicated 4.5 second-feet. 

Several tributaries empty into the valley of Lodgepole Creek, but they do not 

· contain flowing waters except in times of freshet. The principal one is Sidney Draw 

with its two branches, heading in the high .table-land far westward in Kimball County, 

south of Lodg:pole Valley. The brancl1es which empty into Lodgepole Creek from 

the north head in high table-lauds a short distance back and descend to the valley as 

dry coulees with steep declivities. Some contain underflows from springs which 

ordinarily do not have sufficient volume to reach the surface. 

SNAKE CREEK. 

Snake Creek is a stream which heads in the southeast corner of Sioux County, 

mainly among the sand hills, and flows in a very shallow valley over the table-land 

north of the valley of North Platte River. It receives waters from various springs, 

but its flow over the surface is intermittent and the volume of water relatively 

small. Its princtpal branch is from the north, known as Point of Rocks Creek, 

which contains a spring of fair size, but flows mamly underground. 

NIOBRARA RIVER. 

This stream flows in a relatively shallow depression in the summit of the high 

table-hinds lying between North Platte and White rivers. It enters Nebraska from 

Wyoming, aml is a tine running stream of considerable volume throughout its course. 
STREAMS. 5o 

For this reason it was called by the Indians Niobrara, meaning "running water." 

This translation is still much in use, and the French equivalent, "L'eau qui court," 

is occasionally heard. 

vVe have only two reports on the volume of the river, one of gaging made by 

Mr. E. T. Youngfelt. June 23, 1896, at Marsland, where the flow was found to be 

· 4 second-feet, which seems incredibly small, and the other, a measurement made by 

Prof. L. E. Hicks in range 51, Dawes County, of 98 second-feet on September 4, 

1887. 

The principal branch which this stream receives in western Nebraska is \Vhistle 

Creek, a flowing stream of small volume which heads in Coyote Springs. The other 

branches are very small and do not have "f\owing water at the :-mrface. 

WHITE RIVER. 

The valley heading in Pine Ridge a short distance east of Harrison and opening 

diagonally out of the high lands near Crawford contains the he~dwaters of Wh~te 

River. From its head spring,.;, near Andrews, it is a running stream which gradually 

increases in volume to the northeast and becoli1es ~i prominent river before leaving 

Nebraska. During the greater part of 1897 a gaging station was maintained at 

Crawford, Nebr., the results obtained being given on page 299 of Part IV of the 

Nineteenth Annual Report. The following gagings by Mr. E. T. Y oungfelt indicate 

the volume of White River in early summer and the rate of flow of a number of its 

branches at various points: 

Discharge measnrements of White River cmd some of its branches. a 

Stream. Date. Locality 

·white River_ _________ June 24,1896 See. 23, T. 31 N., R. 5:i \-,- .. 

DO--------------- _____ do ___ , ___ Crawford .......... ______ _ 

Do _______________ June 25,1896 Whitney-----------------

Do _______________ June 1,1891 Chadron _________________ _ 

Soldier Creek ______ .__ June 24, 1896 Fort Robinson __ ... _____ . _ 

White Clay Creek _____ ..... do------- N. line see. 2, T. 31 N., R. 

52W. 

Fort Robinson ditch __ . ___ .do _. , •••. Fort Robinson------ .. ___ -i 

Squaw Creek ____ . ______ ._.do _____ . _ N. line sec. 1, T. 31 N., R. i 

5~ \V. ! 

! 

N. line sec. 25, T. 32N., R. : 51 W. I 

East Ash C~eek ____ . ___ ._ .. do _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Half mile above mouth __ .. I 

West Ash Creek ___ . _ _ June 25, 181:!6 

Disch1trge 

per second. 

Cubic feet. 

23.30 

80. 70 

27.20 

123.00 

3.23 

4.00 

. 79 

. 6() 

1. 73 

1. 09 

. 10 

I 

I 

Little Cottonwood ..... do------- Sec. 7, T. 32N., R. 51 W __ 11 

Creek. 

i I Big Cottonwood Creek .. :. _.do ______ . 6 miles west of Whitney_--~- . 20 , 

Indian Creek --------- . _._.do _____ . _ Near mouth .. _______ ._.... . 06 

-------' 

a Eighteenth Ann. Rept. U.S. Geol. Survey (fur 1896-97), pt. i, lb97, p, 193. 
54 GEOLOGY .AND HYDROGRAPHY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

White River receives numerous b:ranches from the deep canyons in the north 

face of Pme Ridge between Glen station and Chadron, notably from "\Vhite Clay, 

Ash, Indian, and Chadron creeks. Its principal affluent on the north side is Soldier 

Creek, which heads in T. 32, R. 54, and furnishes a considerable volume of water, in 

part used in irrigation at Fort Robinson. Little Cottonwood, Big Cottonwood, Lone 

Tree, and Rush creeks are the principal branches from the north and west. They 

furnish but small amounts of water and are usually in greater part dry during 

midsummer. 

HAT OREEK RASIN. 

Hat Creek and its numerous branches head in deep canyons along the north face 

of Pine Ridge from Round Top to the Wyoming line. A large amount of water is 

supplied by the head streams, notably Hat Creek and Sowbelly, Prairie Dog, Monroe, Warbonnet, and Jim creeks, but the amount diminishes rapidly by evaporation 

as the edge of South Dakota is approached. The branches which head among the 

lou hills north of Pine Ridge contain water only in the rainy portion of the year. 

IRRIGATION. 

There is in this region considerable acreage under cultivation with the assistance 

of irrigation. There are extensive canals along the vall(ly of North Platte Rh,er, 

several ditches along ~White and Niobrara rivers, and local arrangements for irrigation have been made in some of the smaller valleys. The results have been so satisfactory that there is prospect of some extension of irrigation operations. Much of 

the country is distant from good markets, and during the last few years farm products 

usually have not sold at profitable prices. The local demands, however, have often 

been sufficient to yield satisfactory returns to many of the irrigators. In Pls. XL 

and XLI are shown the canals and irrigated and irrigable areas in Nebraska west of 

the one hundred and third meridian and north of latitude 41° 30 '. 

NORTH PLATTE VALLEY. 

The large volume of water in North Platte River and the wide bottom lands 

bordered by long zones of gentle slopes afford ideal conditions for irrigation in this 

valley. The soil is usually thick and rich and, although somewhat alkaline, responds 

most satisfactorily. 

The history of irrigation in the valley dates back to the latter part of 1887, with 

the organization of the Farmers' Canal ·Company in Cheyenne County. Soo~n there- . . 

after the Winter Creek, Minatare, and Enterprise canals were built, in 1888 and 1889, 

although the Enterprise canal was not entirely completed until ~>Omewhat later. 

The Minatare canal was begun in February, 1888, and opened August 20, 1888. 

These canals are all in Cheyenne and Scotts Bluff counties. The Mitchell canal was 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

) 

R.53 

\:1 

PROFESS ION AL PAPER NO.I? PL. XL 

Canals in operation in 1897 

Areas irrigated in 1897 

Areas avai1able for irrigation from the 

present. canals 

-

Areas available for irrigation from canals 

v.mch could be construcred aL higher levels. These. are mostly adjoined by slopes on wh1ch 

conditions are not favorable for u·Mgation 

Scale 

TRRIGATION 'MAP OF NEBRASKA \'\TEST OF THE 103 D ~IERIDLI\..~ 

BY N.H . DARTON 1898 
U. S . GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSION AL PAPER NO. I? PL.XLI 

K . 0 T A --------------------------------l4::i>l 

JRRTGAT JON CA.~ALS .1\..""<D DTTC' HES I N 1897 

- AREAS IRRIGATED I N 1897 

S cal e 5 0 B 10 Inites 

Tlu mn.wur lines in· broJVf// iruiicate elevations and shape of"lh~ lwtd. 

Tiley~ ut l'erticalllUtJrVats orJ0012:e~forthegreaterpart of'tlw ana 

tlltfy ctre approxinUlte a.1ul. JYere draA1-'Il lronz..bcu'07Jteter readings 

IRRIGATION MAP OF NIOBRARA RIVER, WHITE RIVER, AND HAT CREEK BASINS IN NEBRASKA 'VEST OF THE 103D MERIDIAN 

BY N. H. DARTON 1898 

;JULIUS B tEN 8 CO. LITH. N.Y. 
IRRIGATION. 55 

soon after constructed, in Scotts Bluff County, on the south side of the river .west of 

Scotts Bluff. It is about 25 miles in length, 24 feet wide at the bottom, and conveys 

water to about 20,000 acres of bottom land. Early in 1888 the Castle Rock canal 

was constructed. It has a width of 18 feet on the bottom for .the first 9 miles and 

then divides into two branches, each about 8 feet wide on the bottom and carrying 3 

feet of water. Another large canal was built at Bayard. In 1893 the Ramshorn 

ditch was built in the western part of Scotts Bluff County. The Farmers canal has 

a head gate with a front opening 156 feet wide, with 27 individual gates. It is capable of taking an 8-foot head of water. The canal is 60 feet wide at the bottom and 

carries 8 feet of water. The first mile is completed 60 feet wide on the bottom, and 

for the remainder of its length its width is 30 feet. A gaging made at its head gate 

by Mr. E. T. Youngfelt on June 19, 1896, showed a flow of 2.28 cubic feet a second. 

The following list comprises all the main canals, but not the many miles of laterals into which they empty: 

Ldst of irrigation cana/8 in valley of North Platte River, in Nebraska, 1cest o.f the one httndred and third 

meridian. 

Name. Loeation of intake. I Length. 

Scotts Bluff County: Miles. 

Lawrence canal ......... Horse Creek........... Wyoming __ ....... 5 

Mitchell canal .. .. .. .. .. North ·Platte ~iver ......... do ........ _.... 25 

Sec. T. R. 

Farmers canal ............... do .. .. .. .. .. .. • .. . 19 23 58 15 

Ramshorn canal ............. do .. . . .. .. .. .. .. . . 34 23 58 6 

Enterprise canal ............. do .............. .. 

Winter canal ................ do .............. .. 

Gering canaL ................ do ............... . 

Minatare canaL .............. do ...... __ ....... . 

Castle Rock canal ............ do .............. .. 

Bayard canal ................ do .............. .. 

Cheyenne County: 

Bayard canal ................ do ............... . 

Chimney Rock canal ......... do ........ __ .. ~. __ 

Alliance canal ...... __ ....... do .............. .. 

Belmont canal .. = . ........... do .............. .. 

Browns Creek canaL ......... do .............. .. 

12 23 57 

35 22 56 

7 21 55 

14 21 55 

19 21 54 

35 21 54 

35 21 54 

22 20 53 

23 20 53 

34 20 52 

11 19 51 

22 

11 

5 

io 

15 

8 

122 

7 

11 

10 

15 

6 

49 

Total................ ...... ............ ...... ............ .... .... 171 
56 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

The Lawrence canal derives its water from Horse Creek, in vVyoming, and it is 

supplemented by one 400-acre storage reservoir 10 feet deep and another covering 

180 acres 11 feet deep. 

The following estimates of er·ops raised in the Platte Valley are based on data 

obtained by Mr. C. A. Fisher and others during the autumn of 1897. In Scotts 

Bluff County the area irrigated from North Platte River in 1897 was 16,080 acres, 

in which wild hay, alfalfa, corn, and wheat were th~ principal crops. Oats and 

garden vegetables were also in,igated extensively. In Cheyenne County the area 

irrigated from North Platte River in 1897 was 4,150 acres, of whieh hay and alfalfa 

were the principal products, together with smaller amounts of various cereals 

and vegetables. The yield per acre of crops under irrigation is somewhat variable. 

'Wheat usually harvests from 30 to 40 bushels an aere; potatoes, 150 to 200 bushels, 

and wild hay, H torts. Alfalfa yields 2 tons to the cutting, and is cut three times a 

season. Near Sunflower post-office there i~ an extensive orchard under irrigation, 

which promises to be very successful. It contains about 3,200 trees, many berry 

bushes, and 5,000 strawberry plants. 

The cost of irrigation was found to vary greatly. Figures were obtained for 

7,500 acres in the Platte Valley, which indicate an average cost of 41 cents an acre. 

The farms are mostly from 80 to 160 acres. The individual cost an acre varied in 

greater part from 30 to 75 cents. In many cases the water was paid for partly in 

cash and partly in labor. 

l'U"'IPKINSEED VALLEY. 

Pumpkinseed Creek is available for irrigation of a small marginal acreage along 

the greater part of its course, but the waters are used only to a small extent." There 

is a ditch, known as the Courthouse Rock canal, extending from the west line of 

range 50 to Greenwood Creek, a dista~cc of 5 miles, and there are several small local 

ditches and reservoirs at various points, shown in Pl. XL. The area of crops is 

about 90 acres, embracing several hay meadows. Lawrence Fm·k is used locally for 

irngation 2 miles south of Redington, and its excellent water supply would admit of 

much more extensive use. 

NIOBRAHA VALLEY. 

The waters of Niobrara River are utilized extensively for the irrigation of 

narrow strips of the bottom lands. There are canals at frequent intervals along its 

course, which furnish water mainly for bay meadows. Some grain crops are raised, 

but their acmage is small. The total area under irrigation in 1897 was about 7,015 

acres. 
IRRIGATION. 57 

The following is a list of the canals, compiled from data recently obtained by· 

the State engineer: 

List of irrigation clitche.s along Niobrara River, in Nebraska, west of (he one lmnclrecl ancl third meridian. 

,-----------------.,----;-·------· ·----

Location of 

intake. ApproxiX am e. , mnte 

I 

- length. Sec. T. R. 

------------ ---- ------

Sioux County: 

Bigelow & Seymour ditch ___________________ _ 19 31 57 

'Varneke's ditch ___ , __ ...... ·-············-- 27 31 57 

Johnson's ditch .. _______ . _____ ,_ ... __ . ___ .. _ 36 '31 57 

Lacota ditch . __ .. _ ... _ ... _ . _ . . ......... __ .. 1 30 57 

Peter Bourett's ditch ............. _ .. _._. ___ . 29 30 56 

Earnest ditch ______ ..... ___ .... _ ....... _ .. _. 9 29 56 

l\~c~~nle~ ~ Sto~er up~e~ d~t~h _ ...... ~ _ ... _ -~ J.\icGmle) & StO\er lo\\etthtch ··-··-··-·-··· 

Harris & Neece eli tch .................... ___ . 

23 29 56 

25 29 56 

3 28 55 

La Belle ditch _ ... __ . _. _ . _. ______ .. __ ..... _. 6 28 54 

--ditch---'-----·---···--·-········--·· 4 28 54 

Irion Brothers' ditch ... ____ . __ ._ ... _. __ . ___ . 1 28 54 

Box!::~:e~~~:ltt~~-- -----.---------- ..... -.-.;.- -~ \) 28 I .53 

McLaughlin ditch .. --·-·. ____ .... _. _____ . __ _ 9 28 52 

Vincent ditch. ___ . __ .... ____ .......... _._-_. 10 28 52 

Hughes ditch._---------·. ___ .......... ____ _ 1 28 52 

Dawes County: 

Snow ditch . __ ...... __ .- .... __ .... __ .... ___ . 35 29 51 

Palmer ditch. _______________ ; .. _ ......... _._. 36 29 51 

Furman ditch. __ ._. __ .. _ .. _____ ,. __ ._....... 29 29 50 

Enterprise ditch------------·-----'---------!· 28 29 50 

Hatch & Crossditch ......................... 1 25 29 50 

Mc!\iannis & N eelancl ditch ________ . __ . ____ -.· \ 29 29 49 

'' t I i loa ·---··----·---------------------··-··i··--· _______ _ 

WHITE IUVER BASIN. 

Niles. 

1. 75 

2.00 

. 75 

.3.00 

2.00 

4.00 

3.50 

3.00 

10.00 

2.00 

4.00 

2.00 

3.50 

3.00 

1.00 

2.00 

1. 00 

5.00 

3.00 

3.50 

3.00 

2.00 

65.00 

The relatively large volumes of running water in ·white River and those of its 

branches which head in the canyons on the north front of Pine R:idge have been 

utilized ttt various points for irrigation. Many ditches have been constructed, and 

there are plans for a more extensive use of the waters. At present about 3,655 

acres are under irrigation, in greater part along the main valley. 
5.8 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY 01<' WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

The following list of ditches is compiled from. data obtained by the State 

engineer during 1897: 

List of irrigation ditches in WMte Riur Basin, in Nebraska, west of the one hundred and third nw1·id·ian. 

Name. Location of intake. 

Sioux County: 

Lewis ditch .................. White River .. . 

Schwartz-Hughson ditch ........... do ....... . 

Tucker's ditch ...... _ ............. do .. ." .... . 

Colville ditch---------------- Kyle Creek ... . 

Diedrichson ditch __ ..... ___ ._ White River .. . 

Johnson ditch ---------------·-----do--------

Jacobson ditch _______________ ..... do--------

Mason ditch . _. _ .. __ .. _ ..... _ ..... do ....... . 

Crawfonl Citizens' ditch ........... do--------

Dawes County: 

Crawford Citizens' ditch ........... do_· ______ _ 

Hazletonditch ............... ·white Clay 

Creek. 

Cooper ditch. ___ . __ ..... _ ......... do ....... . 

Butterworth ditch._ ......... _ White River .. . 

Hall'sditch __________________ ..... do--------

White River .Irrigation Com- ..... do ....... . pany's ditch. 

McFarland'sditch ............ White Clay 

Creek. 

HarriH & Cooper ditch ..... __ . White River. .. 

Rasher eli tch. _ .. : ... ___ ... _ . __ .. __ do . _ ..... . 

Welling ditch ..................... do ... _ ... _ 

Harris ditch . __ ........ _ ..... _ .... do ... _ •... 

McManus ditch--------------- HookerCreek .. 

Stewart Brothers' ditch .. _.... Little Cottonwood Creek. 

Thomas Stewart ditch....... . .... do ..... _ .. 

Spring Creek ditch .. _.. . . . . . Spring Creek .. . 

Spring Cr~k ditch No. 1 .. . . . .... do ... _ ... . 

Knsil ditch------------------ Little Cottonwood Creek. 

Mace ditch .•... _ ......•...... WestAshCreek. 

I

' West Ash Creek Irrigation ..... do •.•..... 

Company's ditch. 

I 

Baron ditch .................. East Ash Creek. 

Ox Yoke ditch .....•..•••... __ .... do ....... . 

I

' James Wilson ditch ....•.... _ Indian Creek . ·_ 

L_ ·--se_e~ist ditch .... _ ... __ ........ __ .do .... ----

----

Sec. T. 

27 3 

26 3 

34 3 

1 

1 

1 

3 3 

1 3 

7 3 

0 

32 3 

32 3 

23 3 

23 3 

13 3 

2 3 

3 3 

34 3 

34 3 

35 3 

25 3 

19 3 

17 3 

17 3 

7 3 

8 3 

0 

0 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

2 

2 

2 

2 

2 

2 

2 

1 

2 

8 32 

13 32 

18 32 

9 32 

2 31 

36 32 

32 32 

31 32 

10 31 

3 31 

R. 

51:1 

55 

54 

54 

54 

53 

5'' ,)

53 

53 

53 

52 

52 

52 

51 

52 

52 

52 

51 

51 

51 

51 

52 

52 

52 

51 

51 

51 

51 

50 

50 

50 

50 

Length. 

Miles. 

0.50 

.25 

. 75 

1. 00 

. 50 

. 50 

-50 

. 25 

1. 50 

5. 75 

18.50 I 

1. 00 

1. 75 

.50 

13.00 

2.00 

. 75 

10.00 

1. 00 

.50 

2.00 - 1. 00 

1. 50 

. 75 

. 75 

1.00 

1. 00 

1. 00 

2.00 

. 1)0 

1. 50 

.125 

.50 
IRRIGATION. 

List of ·irrigation ditches in White River Basin, in Nebra.ska, etc.-Continued. 

Name. Location of intake. Length. 

---------------------------1-----------

Dawes County-Continued. 8ec. 1'. R. ,Jfiles. 

Flood ditch .................. East Fork o f 33 32 50 0.75 

Indian Creek 

Smock's ditch ............... Trunk Butte 26 32 50 .50 

Creek. 

Goff ditch------------------- Dead Horse 9 31 49 1. 00 

Creek. 

Norton ditch. ________________ ..... do .... .. -- 9 31 49 . 75 

Woodruff ditch-------------- ..... do .... .. .. 32 32 49 . 75 

Kemery Ram---------------- ..... do ..... . .. 32 32 40 . 50 

. ·w. Wilson's ditch----------- ChadronCreek 12 32 49 . 50 

H. ~L Wilson's ditch. ________ ..... do .... .. .. 12 32 49 . 75 

Half Diamond.-----·-------- ..... do ..... . .. 1 32 49 1. 00 

69. 125 

TotaL _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ___ . _ . ____ ... -~ -.... -.. -----...... - 74.875 

LODGEPOLE VALLEY. 

The water of Lodgepole Creek has been utilized for irrigation for several years, 

and at times practically aU the stream has been diverted into the fields. Hay has 

been the principal crop, but grains and vegetables have also been irrigated to some 

extent. The average volume of the creek is about 4 cubic feet per second, but along 

some portion of the valley the waters sink beneath the surface and, traveling underground for some distance, emerge again in springs. The following facts relating to 

this valley are taken from notes by Mr. Adna Dobson, made in the summer of 

1895:Ct 

Commencing from the west, the first ditch is the Hoover, which supplies water 

for about 50 acres; then come the ditches of S. A. Pierce and L. C. Kinney, 

whi~h supply water for about 57'5 acres, mainly of hay lands. In the next 4 

miles no more water is taken out, and then comes the head of the Young 

ditch, which supplies wate~· for about 30 acres, extending to sec. 34, T. 15, R. 57. 

Five miles lower down is the ditch of Carl Ruttner, which takes water on each. 

side of. the creek, the total amount being. 4.9. cubic feet a second, which is 

used for covering about 40 acres. One mile lower down is the beginning of 

J. J. Kinney's south ditch, which takes all the water in the creek, 3.6 cubic feet 

a second, for the cultivation of about 140 acres. One-half mile below this is the 

head of J. J. Kinney's north ditch, into which the entire creek is diverted. The 

"First Biennial Report of the State Board of Irrigation of the Stttte of Nebraska lor 1895 tmd 1896, prepared by\\'. R. 

Akers, Lincoln, 1897, pp. 151-157. 
60 GEOLOGY AND HYD~OGRAPHY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

amount of water is 2.1 cubic feet a second for the watering of 190 acres. These 

ditches are used alternately in order to obtain greater volume. The amount of water 

in the creek increases rapidly below the head of Mr. Kinney's ditch, and at the east 

line of sec. 34, one-half mile below, the creek is running about 6 cubic feet per 

second. Within the next 3 miles is the Hurley, Liley<.~ Polly ditch, which takes 

4.5 cubic feet of water a second for the irrigation of 160 acres. Two miles below 

this is the head of the Hurley & Polly ditch for the irrigation of about 125 acres. 

One-half mile lower down the valley is the head of the Bay State ditch, which takes 

2.5 cupic feet of water a second f~n·lOO acres. In the next '7 miles arc the Mcintosh, 

Circle Arrow, and Brady ditches, with only limited supplies of water, the creek 

becoming practically dry above Mr. Brady's head gate in sec. 28, T."15, R. 54,· and 

continuing so to a point in sec. 4, T. 14, R. 52, where it again appears. A measure-

. mcnt at the head of the Adams ditch, in sec. 31, T. 14, R. 52, showed 2t cubic feet a 

second, which is taken by the Adams ditch for the cultivation of 245 acres, mainly 

of bay. Next below is Thomas Gunderson's ditch, which has 5 cubic feet of water 

a second for 100 acres. In sec. '7, T. 14, R. 51, is the ditch of Mr. Hans Christianson, which takes about 1 cubic foot of ~atcr a second for '70 acres. One and onehalf miles below this is the ditch of Mr. James Mitchell, which takes 3.5 cubic feet 

a second for 60 acres; and next below is the head of Mr. John Anderson's ditch, for 

200 acres. This ditch is used alternately with the Mitchell ditch in order to have a 

sufficient volume of water. Then comes the very small ditch of Mr. J. A. Shanahan 

for the irrigation of 2 or 3 acres. The next dam below is for Mr. M. U rback's ditch. 

·Then there is the ditch of N. P. Lingbolm, which beads in theSE. t sec. 14, T. 14, R. 

.51, and provides water·for 30 acres. It was taking 1.5 cubic feet of water a second 

at the time of observation. The creek is dry below this through sec. 13 and nearly 

through sec. 19. Near the east line of sec. 19 the water rises again, and at the head 

of the Couch ditches, in the SW. t sec. 20, T. 14, R. 50, 2 cubic feet a second is 

available for the irrigation of about 40 acres. Runge's ditches, Nos. 1 and 2, are in 

:,;ccs. 28 and 29, T. 14:, R. 50, and provide for about 105 acres. The Ickes ditch 

comes next, but the amount of water is hardly sufficient to cover more than 100 acres. 

About one-half cubic foot of water a second passes the Ickes dam and fills a small 

pond at the head of the Adams & 'I'obin ditch, but the supply was inadequate to 

cover the 180 acres to be irrigated. Below this dam the creek is entirely dry for 

the next mile, where the water rises again in springs; and at the bead of the Trognitz ditch, in sec. 36, T. 14, R. 50, one-half a cubic foot of water a second flows into 

the ditch and is used for the irrigation of about 34 acres. It is the same ditch that 

was built by the United States to supply water for Fort Sidney. 

The table following gives the acreage of crops irrigated in the Lodgepole Valley 

west of the one hundred and third meridian in 1896, according to the first report of 

the State board of irrigation (p. 158). 
IRRIGATION. 61 

Acreage of crops irrigated in the Lodgepole Valley west of the one hundred and third meridian in 1896. 

Acres. Acres. 

Alfalfa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317 Barley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . • . . . 20 

Native hay ............................. _ 2, 160 Rye ............... "..................... 2 

Corn ............................. _ . . . . . . SO Potatoes . _ .... _ . , ..... __ ....... ___ ... _ . . 42 

Oats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 Garden trees, etc ................... __ ... 25 

\Vheat . _ .. ___ ........................ : .. 

1\'l.illet ... _ . _ ............................ . 

63 

57 

Total. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . 2, 832 

HAT CREEK BASIN. 

The upper portions of Hat Creek and its numerous branches nnng in canyons 

m the northern slopes of Pine Ridge contain water in sufficient supply for the 

irrigation of many local areas. These are mainly in the relatively narrow canyons, 

where only small strips of land are so situated as to be easily watered. The volume 

of water in most cases is ample and is derived from ever-flowing.springs. Nearly all 

the canyons contain small, short canals, which serve for the irrigation of numerous 

small farms. The total area under irrigation in 1897 was estimated to be 1,860 acres. 

The following is a list of the canals according to the plots of the State engineer: 

List of irrigation ditches in Hat Oreek Basin, Sioux County, Nebr. 

Name. Location of intake. Length. 

I Sec. T. R. .1Ii/ea. I Steel ditch ........... : .......... Hat Creek .....••.. 1 

16 32 55 1. 50 

Coffee's ditch ...........•....... ..... do ....•....... 26 33 55 5.00 

.Miller ditch -------------------- ..... do ........... - ........ 23 33 55 . 75 

Holly's ditch .... _ ............ __ Boggy Creek ....... 31 33 54 1. 00 

Old Sowbeliy ditch .............. Sowbelly Creek .... 7 32 55 2.00 

Hall's ditch -------------------- ..... do .. -- .. --- .. ---- 6 32 55 .50 

M.D. Jordan's ditch ............ ..... do -- .. -..... -- ... -- 21 33 55 1. 50 

Schlitz ditch .................... Cedar Creek ....... 35 33 56 2.00 

Valdeg ditch ............ _ ........ Prairie Dog Creek .. 3 32 56 .50 

Zerbst ditch -.. --.-- .. -------.---. ..... do -.. ----- -~- .. 25 33 56 1. 00 

Big Monroe Creek ditch ......... Big Monroe Creek 33 33 56 2.00 

Biehle ditch .................... -.... -....... --- .. -----... -- 32 33 56 . 75 

Nolan's ditches, No.1 and No. 2 .. War bonnet Creek .. 23 33 57 1. 25 

Kay's ditch ............ , ........ ..... do ...... --. "' .. -.... - 26 3? 57 . 75 

Daut ditch ...................... ..... do -... ---- .. --- ... 30 33 56 1. 00 

--ditch -- .... -- ......... -.. ---- .. -.. -..... do ....................... 31 33 56 1. 00 

Warbonnet ditch ................ ..... do-·----------~ 21 33 56 1. 50 

Woodruff's ditch ................ Jim Creek ......... 14 33 57 1. 00 . . 

Slattery's ditch .............. , .. ••... do ..•...••.•.. 13 33 57 1. 00 

Jim Creek ditch .......... -........ ----.... ..... do ............ 8 33 56 .50 

Hamlin ditch ................... Squaw Creek --.... -.. 10 33 57 .50 

Dmm's ditch ------------------- •.... do ..••..•..... 11 33 57 2.00 
62 GEOLOGY .AND HYDROGR.APHY OF WESTERN NEBRASK.A. 

List of irrigation ditches 'in If at Cre~k Basin, Sioux County, Nebr.-Oontinued. 

,-----~-------,--- ---------------, 

Name. Loc~ttion of intake. I 

; Length. 

--------------------~.-..-_____ I ___ _ 

Sec. T. R. Niles. 

P. D. Dunn's ditch ______ ------_- --- .. do - ______ .--.. 3 33 57 1. 00 

Turner's ditch _______ ... ________ .Antelope Creek____ 26 34 57 1. 50 

Story's ditch ______________ . ____ - _____ do .. ___ . _ _ _ _ _ _ l. 00 8 34 56 

Cherry Creek ditch _. _____ . _ _ _ _ _ Cherry Creek _ _ _ _ _ _ 29 33 54 . 25 

TotaL ____________ -_.- ___ .

1

.---.----- ___ • __ · ___________ : _____ -I 32. 75 

WINDi'\HJ,L IRRIGATION. 

Several farmers in western Nebra§ka have experimented with windmill irrigation 

with encouraging results. There are large supplies of underground waters under 

the high table-lands, beginning with Pine Ridge and lying in broad expanse between 

the larger valleys. This is potably the case on the fine table lying between the 

valleys of Lodgepole Creek and Pumpkinseed Creek. These waters are usually at a 

depth of over 175 feet, but a large windmill soon raises si.1fficient water to fi11 a fairsized reservoir. About 10 acres seems to be the limit for irrigation from one 

windmill, but this area will afford sufficient crops for local use. A reservoir is 

essential for satisfactory irrigation from a pump, but there usually is no difficulty in 

constructing one in the table-land areas. 

CLIMATE. 

Western Nebraska has a climate of typical plains character. It is dry and hot 

in summer, moderately moist in late spring, and cold, but with little snow, in wintPr. 

There is considerable variability jn the climatic features from year to year, rather 

more than is found farther south or. north, and some local variations from point to 

point, particularly in rainfall. RecorJ.s of weather were kept for many years at 

Sidney, in the Lodgepole Valley, and at Fort Robinson, on White River, while for 

shorter periods observations have been madr, at Alliance, Gering, Hay Springs, 

Kimball, and Camp Sheridan. In Pl. XLII there is given a g-raphic reproduction of 

rainfall records covering a· period of several years at some of the stations a.;Jove 

mentioned, compiled from an article on the Rainfall of Nebraska, a by C. D. Swezey 

and G. A. Loveland, together with data for 1896 and 1897, kindly supplied by Mr. 

Loveland. 

Til\fBER. 

The occurrence of timber in this region is restricted to certain localities of relatively limited extent. In the greater part of the plains area there is no timber at 

all, and the valleys of the Platte a_nd upper Ni9bnmi rivers and Lodgepole Creek do 

not contain trees. Along the northern escarpment of Pine Ridge, on the slopes of 

the White River and Hat Creek basins, there is a mod~rately wide zone of scattered 

a University of Nebraska, Bull. Agric. Exper. Stat., vol. 8, article 4, 1896. 
U. S. GEOLOGICAL SUnYEY 

KIMBALL. 

I I I I I 

1884 

1885 

1886 

1887 

1888 - 1889 1- .. ~ 

1890 --

1891 

1892 ... 1893 I1894 ... ~ 

1895 ... 1896 ~----

1897 l..iil ... 

PROFESSIONAL PAPER NO. 17 PL. XLII 

FORT SIDNEY. ALLIANCE. GERING. FORT ROBINSON. HAY SPRINGS. 

I I I ' 1- I I I 

8 

4 

0 

8 

4 

0 

8 

.. 

Q 

.... ~to. ..~~~ .. ~ 0 

... 8 

.. ... -- -- ·-_., & 

+ -- 0 

!I 

...... 4 

-- 1-1- -- ~1-g 

.. r- 0 

....lA 8 

~.o~~•illl !..oil ..~ .. -- ~ -g 4 

- 0 

6 

-~ .. ~ 0 

8 

... 4 

0 

• ... lb. • -- -- 0 

6 

+ 

0 

DIAGRAM OF RAINFALL AT LOCALITIES IN WESTERN NEBRASKA, 1884 TO 1897, 

No precipitation. -Trace. The absence of horizontal line indtcates that no observations were rer.orded during a portion of the year. 

o/1 

loJ 

:r 

0 

z 
TIMBER AND ELEVATIONS. 63 

pine forest. It extends from the crest o£ the ridge down nearly to the foot o£ the 

steeper slopes, and the aggregate amount o£ timber is fairly large. Along the ridge 

south o£ North Platte River there was formerly considerable pine, and many o£ the 

slopes north o£ Platte River and south o£ Pumpkinseed Valley maintained a scattered 

growth o£ pine. Some o£ the canyons in this region contain deciduons trees in 

small groves, and this is also the case in the many canyons in the northern slopes o£ 

Pine Ridge and· at intervals alQng the banks o£ \Vhite River. The extent o£ the 

timber in this region is shown in Pl. XLIII. The principal tree is the Rocky 

Mountain pine (Pin~ts ponderosa). It attains a diameter o£ £rom 1 to 2 feet where 

the conditions are most favorable, but its growth is somewhat scattering, and deep 

inroads have been made on the supply by woodcutters. The young pines appear to 

be thrifty, as they spring up abundantly on most o£ the· slopes; and are growing 

vigorously. Some features o£ the pine growth are shown in Pls. VIII and XXI. 

In the region adjoining North Platte River the growth o£ pines is rather 

scanty, and nearly all o£ the larger trees have been or are being cut. This is also 

the case along the edge o£ the table-land south o£ Pumpkinseed Creek. 

The deciduous trees o£ the region comprise mainly cottonwood (Populus monilife:i'a), with a moderate proportion o£ box elder (Negundi~rm americanum), and a 

small variety o£ other similar trees. 

ELEVATIONS. 

List of elevations in Nebraskct west of the one hundred cmd third meridian. 

WESTERN CHEYENNE COUNTY. 

Locality. Altitude. Authority. 

Feet. 

Lapeer . _. __ .. __ . _. _. _ ... _____ . ___ .. 3, 638 U. S. G. S. Leneh mark. 

Courthouse Rock .. __ . _ .... _ ....... . 4,100 Do. 

Jail Rock ... _._ ... _ ..... _._ .. _ ..... . 4, 002 Do. 

Roundhouse Rock .. __ .... _ ..... _ .. . 4, 255 Do. 

Twin ~iounds ... _____ . _ ..... ___ ..... . 4, 309 Do. 

Redington ____ .. __ .. ___ .. ___ ..... _ .. 3, 870 Do. 

Camp Clarke ....... ___ ...... ___ ... . 3, 70,) Do. 

Springs on :Middle Creek . __ .. _ .. - .. . 3, 830 Do. 

Chimney Rock ... _., ___ .......... .. 4, 2-!2 Do. 

Bird Cage Gap .. __ ................ .. 4, 028 Do. 

Bayard ............................ . 3, 780 Do. 

}{edington Gap ... _ ................ . 4,126 -Do. 

Cyrus ... ___ . __ .......... _ .... _ ... .. 4, 320 Do. 

Spring Lakes .... ______ . __ .... _____ .. 4, 260 Do .. 

Duggers Springs .............. _...... 4, 030 . ])o. 

Ridge at· head of i\'lc'Hanigle Canyon.. 4, 520 Do. 

Table-land T. 22, R. 50 W ........... 4,200-4,200! Do .. 

----------~------~---------' 
· MAP SHOWING DISTRIBUTION OF TIMBER IN WESTERN NEBRASKA 

BY N.H. DAR TON 

Scale of miles 10 2() 

- PINE TIMBER c=JcOTTO.NWOOD.BOXELDER,AND 0THE11 DECIDUOUS TIMBER 

JULIUS_aiE.t-.: &.CO UTH.N.':" 
64 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY OF WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

List of elevations ·in Nebraska 1l!est of the one hundred and third meridian-Continued. 

WESTERX CHEYENNE COUNTY-Continued. 

------- -----~ 

I j------ Locality. Altitude, Authority. 

---,-~1 --~-- ----~--

Feet. 

4,415 

4,450 1 

Ickes post-office .................... . 

Table at head of Wile! Horse Canyon .. 

Sidney ...............•............. 

Margate siding ..................•... 

Bronson ........................... . 

Herd on siding ..................... . 

Potter ....................... _ ..... _ 

J aei n to siding ...................... . 

Barometer. · 

U.S. G. S. 

4, 090 Gannett." 

4, 13!l Union Pacific Railroad. 

:::~ I a~:;, i --~ 486 J~nion Pacific Railroad_. _i 

KIMBALL COUNTY. 

Dix ............................... . Union Pacific Hailroad. 

Owasco siding .......•.............. 

Kimball ........................... . 

Adams ............................ . 

·Bushnell siding .... · ................ . 

~~-s:1:~~ sidi::~------· ............... . 

4,542 

4,616 

4,697 

4, 781 

4,859 

4,925 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

BANNER COUNTY. 

Wildcat Mountain.: ................ . 

Hog~aek Mountain ................. . 

Castle Hock ........................ . 

Bighorn Mountain ......•........... 

Wrights Gap ............•........... 

Gabe Rock ................••.....•. 

Freeport. .............•.. _ ......... . 

Harrisburg _ ....................... . 

Ashford ........................... . 

Mud Springs ....................... . 

Willow Springs .................... . 

Funnel Rock ....................... . 

Gabe Springs ...................... . 

Long Springs ...................... . 

Summit of table south of Harrisburg .. 

Smokestar.k Rock ...........•...... 

Sheep Mountain ....... ~ ........... . 

Williams Gap .....•....•.•.......... 

Hubbard Gap .............•.•....... 

5,038 

5,082 

4,472 

4, 718 

4,425 

5,006 

4,010 

4,500 

4,230 

4,640 

4,450 

4,502 

4,700 

4, 700 

5,100 

4,326 

4,507 

4,420 

4,494 

·U.S. G. S. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Barometer. 

U.S. G. S. 

Do. 

! Do. 

I Do. 

_j 

a Dictionary of altitude in the United States: BulL U. S. Gcol. Survey No. 160, 1899. 
ELEVATIONS. 

IJkqt of elevation8 in Nebra8ka 1uest of the one hundred and third mericl\an-Continued. 

SCOTTS BLUFF COUNTY. 

Locality. Altitude. Authority. 

Scotts Bluff ________________________ _ Jo'eet. 

4,662 

4,560 

3,902 

3,965 

3,990 

3,825 

3,940 

4,018 

4,050 

4,000 

3,960 

4,450 

3,900 

U.S. G. S. 

·Dome Rock ________ ----------------_ Gering ____________________________ _ 

Sedan _____________________________ _ 

Winter Springs·- ___________________ _ 

Minatare ________________ - ____ ~ _-- _ -

Sunflower _________________________ _ 

Collins ____________________________ -. 

CaldwelL _________________________ ·-_ 

~iitchell. __________________________ _ 

Larissa ___ --- _______ --- _____ , ______ _ 

Dorrington _____ - - __ - - __ - - - - _______ _ 

Intake of Winter canal ____________ _ 

Intake of Enterprise canal __________ _ 

Roubedeau Pass. ___________________ _ 

Signal Butte _________ - __ -- ______ : __ _ 

Summit of Ridge at head of Cedar 

Can J-on. 

'3,980 

4,480 

4,583 

4,860 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Mitchell Pass - ___ - ___ - __ -- _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 4, 180 Do. 

Bald Peak ____ .. _____________ - _ _ _ _ _ _ 4, 420 Do. I 

North Platte River at Wyoming line._ 4, 035 Do.. I 

Castle Rock _____ - __ -- __ -- _- _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 4, 473 Do. I 

Steamboat Rock ______________ :_____ 4,319 Do. 

Round top Rock __ ------ __ ---________ 4, 479 Do. 

' -'-----------'---..c...._---'-~----'---'1. ~yote Hill_________________________ 4,460 Do. 

SIOUX COUNT¥. 

Snyder'sranch _____________ =~31~-~ U.S. G. S. 

Sturdimnt's ranch _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 4, 375 I Do. 

SW. corner of the county __________ --

.NW. corner of the county-----------

Harrison _____________________ - - ___ -

Andrews ______________________ ----' 

Glen-------------------------------

Adelia. _____________ - ___ - __ - ______ --

Mansfield __________________________ _ 

Niobrara River at Wyoming line ____ _ 

Niobrara River at eastern margin of 

the county. 

14478-No. 17-03--5 

4,050 

4,125 

4,849 

4,422 

4,038 

I Do. 

Barometer. 

F., E. and M. V.' Rwy. 

Do. 

Do. 

3, 725 B. and M. R. R. R. 

3, 628 Do. 

4, 730 Barometer. 

4, 200 Do. 

65 
66 GEOLOGY AND HYDROGRAPHY 01!' WESTERN NEBRASKA. 

Uist of elevations in Nebraska west of the one hundred and third meridian-Continued. 

SIOUX COUNTY-Continued. 

------------------------, 

I--------------L-oc_a_li_t)_··------------- Altitu~~-------~'_'t_h_o_ri-t)-·. ________ 1 

Niobrara River at Roy ville ......... . 

Niobrara River at mouth of Whistle 

Creek. 

Highest sandhill in sec. 17, •r. 26, R. 55. 

Highest sandhill in sec. 21, T. 27, R 56. 

Corbin's ranch ...... _. __ . _ .. ___ .. _ . _. 

Mud Springs ....................... , 

Coyote Springs ...... __ ._. ____ ... ___ _. 

McGinley Lakes _ .. _ ............... . 

East Spring ........................ . 

Spotted tail Springs ................. _ 

Wind Spring8. _ ----- _. ___________ .. . 

Gilchrist .. _. __ ..... __ . _ . _. __ . _. __ . _; 

I 

Montrose _ ...... _ .................. . 

Round top •........ _ ................. i 

Coliseum Rock ....... _ ....... _ .... _.: 

Pine Ridge at ·wyoming line, T. 3:~, 

R. 57. 

Pine Ridge, south of Andrews._ ... _. 

Pine Ridge, soi1th of Glen----------

Feet. 

4,457 

4,2go 

5,100 

5,020 

4,495 

4,470 

4,520 

4,530 

-l, 52.') 

-1, 120 

4,460 

3,900 

3,750 

4,525 

5,050 

5,060 

4,800 

4,810 

U. S. G. ~-

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Barometer. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

'----------------------'--~-------

DAWES COUNTY. 

Fort Robinson station ........ : ..... -I 

Crawfonl. _. ____ . _ .. _____ . __ . _. ____ _ 

\Vhitney ..................... _ .... . 

Dakota .Junction ................... . 

Remington ....... _ .... _. ___ . ____ . _. 

Rutland_. __ ._ ... _._, ... _ ......... __ 

Belmont .......... , ................ . 

Marsland . __ .... _ . _ .. _ ...... _ . _. __ .. 

<) ~---

•>, I ID 

H,674 

3,404 

:~, 256 

3,660 

-1, 141 

4,493 

'1, 156 

4,GOO 

8,900 

Gannett. a 

F., E. and .iVL V. Rwy. 

Do. 

Do. 

B. awl i\l. R. R. R. 

Do. 

Do. 

Do. 

Barometer. 

Do. 

Summit of Pine Ridge, near Belmont. I 

Niobrara River at 103d meridian .. _ .. 

-----------------------' 

BOXBUTT~~ COUNTY. 

' 

Herningford #. ___ • _________________ _l ..J-, 256 H. and 1\L R. R. R 

Girard ________ ....... ___ . __________ 1 4, :3G.5 , Do. 

----------- a Lnc. cit, 

(! 
INDEX. 

IJage. 

Adelia, badlands near, view of ....................... ·1~, 44 

Adelia station, formations near . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 

section from Round Top to . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 

Alliance, rainfall at................................... 62 

Alluvial formations, water in......................... 44 

occurrence and character of .................... 15, 22-23 

Altitudes, list of ....................................... 63-66 

Ardmore, boring at.................................... 47 

Arikaree !ormation, blow out in, view of . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 

.butte of, view of.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 

cliffs of, view of. ..................... ,............. 30 

conglomerate in ................................... 28-29 

sections showing ............................... 27, 28 

view of......................................... 24 

Dremonelix beds in, view of....................... 28 

occurrence anrl character of. ................... 17,25-29 

pipy concretions in, view of ............. _......... 28 

section showing relation of Brule formation to .... 25,26 

·showing Oguhtlla formation uncl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 

springs in...... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 

Yiew of Gering formation, Brule clay, uncl........ 32 

Brule clay and................................. 26 

volcanic ash in . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 

water in........................................... 44 

Artesian flow at Omaha, areas of, map showing . . . . . . 50 

Ash, volcanic, occurrence of ............ _ ....... _ .. &l), 42--4.3 

Ashford, fonnations near . ................ _ . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 

section near .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . .. .. . . 37 

Badiands at foot of Scotts Bluff, view of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 

near Adelia, view of. ........ _ ..................... 42,44 

Barbour, E. H., aid by................................. 9 

cited on occurrence of Dremonelix................ 27 

Benton formation, occurrence and churacter oL .. .... 19,42 

Big Cottonwood Creek, measurement of . .. .. .. .. .. . .. 53 

Birdcage Gap, formations exposed in, view of........ 32 

Gering formation at:. . .. . . .. . . . .. . .. . . .. .. . .. . . .. . 30 

thickness of... . .. . . . . . .. . .. .. . . .. . . . . .. .. . . .. .. 29 

section at.......................................... 36 

Black Hills, section from Pine Ridge to............... 46 

Blow out, view of...................................... 28 

Brule clay, Gering formation lyinguncoriformablyon, 

view of.................................... 34 

occurrence and character of. ................... 18,37-40 

unconformity between Gering formation and, section showing ................. _ ... _ ........ . 

view of A rikaree formation on .... : .............. . 

Arikaree and Gering formations and ......... . 

volcanic ash in ... __ ........... ____ ................ . 

\Vater in ........... _ ............................ _ .. . 

Brule formation, lens in, view of. ..... _ .............. . 

section showing relation of Arikaree formation to. 

Camp Clarke, discharge of North Platte River at ..... 

Carboniferous formations, occurrence and c~aracter of ................... ·:.··· .............. . 

\Vater i11 ............. _. _. _ ...... _ .... _ .... ___ ... _ .. 

31 

26 

32 

-13 

42 

25,26 

50 

20-21 

46 

Page. 

Castle Rock, formations at .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 32 

section at and near ......... :.. .. .. . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . 36, 38 

vie\v of .................... _ .................... _.. 42 

Cedar Canyon, formations at.......................... 35 

section iri . ........... · ........................ __ . . . . . 34, 35 

·chadron, boring nt ...... ...... ...... ... .. . .. .. ...... .. 47 

section at.......................................... 40 

Chadron formation, occurrence and character of .. 18,40-41 

Cheyenne County, snnd hills in, Yiew of.............. 22 

Chimney Rock, formntions exposed near ............. 31-32 

Gering formation neur, thickness of............... 29 

sections near .. .. . .. .. .. .. .. .. . .. .. .. .. .. . .. .. .. .. . 32, 36 

view of............................................ 34 

Climate, discussion of .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . 62 

Conglomerate at base of Ogalalla formation, view of.. 24 

in Arikaree formation ............................. 28-29 

sections showing .............................. 27,28 

view of........................................ 21 

Cottonwood limestone, occurrence of................. 20 

Courthouse Rock, nltitude of.......................... 12 

formations at . . .. . .. . . .. .. .. . .. .. .. .. . .. .. . .. . .. .. . 30 

Gering formation ut, thickness of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 

section at.......................................... 36 

view of............................................ 12 

Dremonelix, occurrence of ......... _ .... _. . . . . . . . . . . . . 25, 27 

Dremonclix beds in Arikarcc formation, view of...... 28 

Dakota snndstone, occurrence and character of ..... _. 19,42 

water in ...... _..................................... 46 

Declivity of head of liquids, diagram illustmting..... 47 

Dini~tis, occurrence of .......... ~: .................... 3()-31 

Ditches, lists of. ........................... 55, 57, o8-ii9, 61-62 

Dobson, A dna, notes by .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . .. .. .. .. .. . 59 

stream measurements by.......................... .'i2 

Dome, Gering formation at............................ 36 

Darrington, formations ncar ..... _ .. _ .... _. __ ......... 36 

sections near .... _ .............. _ .. ; ........ _.. . . . . 27, 36 

Drift, occurrence and character of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 

East Ash Creek, measurement of. ......... ,........... 53 

Elevations, Jist of. ............. : .. . : ........ :.. .. . . .. .. 63-66 

Erosion, wind, in Gering formation, plu.te showing... 16 

Fnnlt in Gering formation, view of.................... 30 

Fisher; C. A., aid by .................................. . 

reference to........................................ fi6 

Fort Robinson, rainfall nt............................. 62 

Fort Robinson ditch, meusurement·of ............. , .. 53 

Fort Sidney, rainfall at................................ 62 

Freeport, Arikaree formation ne11r, thickness of....... 27 

Funnel Rock, formationsncar......................... 36 

section near .. .. .. . .. .. .. . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . 37 

Gering, Brule clay near ...... :.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 38-39 

Gering formation near, thickness of............... 29 

lens in Brule formation near, view of . . . . . . . . . . . . . -12 

rainfall at.......................................... 62 

sections near ... _ .......................... 2:), 28, 32, 33,34 

well at ..... ·...................................... 45 

(i7 
68 INDEX. 

Page. 

Gering formation, fault in, view of.................... 30 

occurrence and character of. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-18, 29-37 

relations of, section showing . .. .. . . . .. . .. . .. . .. .. . 30 

sections showing relations to associated formations ............................. _.. . .. . . .. 36, 38 

unconformity between Brule clay and_ ........ _. 31 

view of Arikaree formation, Brule clay, and..... 32 

Brule clay and ..................... _ ........ _.. 34 

"'aterin ····---------·--············----------~----

wind erosion in, plate showing ................. _ .. 

Greenhorn limestone, fossils of Niobrara chalk and, 

plate siwwing _ .... _ ..................... .. 

Hackberry Canyon, Arikaree formation near, thickness of ................ · .................... . 

Harrisburg, Arikaree formation near, thickness of ... . 

boring at ........................................ .. 

Hat Creek Basin, irrigation in ........................ _ 

irrigation ditches in, list of ...................... .. 

streams in ..... ~ ................................. --

topography of ................................... .. 

vic'v over ... · ..... _ .............. -- ................ . 

Hat Creek region, irrigation map of. ................ .. 

Hay Springs, minfall at ............................. .. 

Head of liquids, diagram illustrating declivity of. ... . 

Hicks, L. E., stream measurement by ............... .. 

Horseshoe Flat, section ncar ......................... . 

Indian Creek, measurements of. .................... .. 

Inocerarnus, occurrence of .......... -................. . 

Inocemmus Jabiatus, plate showing ................. .. 

Irrigation, extent of. ................................. . 

Irrigation map of North Platte Valley ............... . 

Jail Rock, Gering formation at. ...................... . 

views of ......................................... .. 

Kimball, rainfltll at ................................. .. 

I~angs Point, Arikaree formation near ............... . 

sections at and near ............................. .. 

Laramie formation, occurrence and churacter of .... . 

Larissa, conglomerate near, thickness of ............. . 

conglomerate near, view of. ...................... . 

formation at ..................................... .. 

sections at and near .............................. _ 

Lawrence Fork, eection in valley of ................. .. 

springs in valley of. .............................. . 

Little Cottonwood Creek, measurement of ........... . 

Little Monroe Ctmyon, Doomonelix beds in Arikaree 

formation in, view of ..................... . 

Lodgepole Creek, course and character of ........ , .. . 

Lodgepole Valley, crops irrigated in ................. . 

irrigation in. -------···························· 

springs in ........................................ .. 

topography of ................................... .. 

water ir1 _ .................... _ ...... ____ . _. ___ .. __ . 

Loefls, occurrence and character of. .... _ ............. . 

Loveland, G. A., and Swezer, C. D., cited on rainfalL 

Lucas, F. A., cited on Dinictis major ................. . 

Missouri region, Upper, map showing factors bearing 

on prospects of underground waters in ... ·. 

Monroe Canyon, cliffs of Arikaree formation near, 

view of ................................... . 

!If ortar beds. See Ogalalla formation. 

Nebraska, general geology of. ....................... .. 

geologic Iormntions in, table of .................. . 

map, geologic, of ................................ .. 

west of one hundred and third meridian ..... . 

map, topographic, of ............................. . 

sectiom of, west of one hundred and third meridiarl ........................................ . 

44 

16 

46 

27 

27 

45 

61-62 

61-62 

54 

13 

18 

56 

62 

47 

53 

32 

53 

42 

46 

54-62 

54 

30 

12,14 

62 

27 

24 

18,41 

29 

24 

~4-35 

38 

31 

49 

53 

28 

52 

61 

59-61 

49 

12 

44 

15-16 

62 

31 

48 

30 

14-21 

14 

18 

20 

10 

20 

Page. 

Niobrara chalk, fossils of Greenhorn limestone and, 

plate showing . . . . . .. . . .. . .. .. .. . .. .. .. .. .. 46 

Niobrara formation, occurrence and character of. .... 19,42 

Niobram River, course and character of .............. 52-53 

irrigation ditches along, location and length 9f .. 57 

Niobruni River region, irrigation map of Wl1ite River 

and Hat Creek regions and................ 56 

Niobrara Valley, irrigation in. .. .. .. .. .. . .. . .. . .. . .. .. 56 

springs iJL......................................... 48 

topography of....................................... 12 

North Platte River, discharge of .. .. .. . .. . .. .. .. .. .. .. 50 

section on . .. .. .. . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . .. . .. .. . 26 

tributaries of .. . .. .. .. . .. .. .. .. .. .. . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . 51 

North Platte Valley, crops raised b)· irrigation in . . . . 56 

irrigation in . .. .. . . .. .. .. .. .. . .. .. . . .. . .. .. . .. . .. .. 54-56 

irrigation canals in, location and length of....... 55 

irrigation map of .. .. .. . .. .. .. .. .. . .. . .. .. . .. .. .. .. 54 

springs in.......................................... 48 

topography of,, ................................... 11-12 

Ogalalla formation, conglomerate at base of, view of. 24 

occurrence and character of. ................ 16-17, 23-25 

sections showing Arikarce formation and......... 24 

wutcrin ........................................... 44 

Omahu, map showing area of artesian flow at .. .. .. .. 50 

section from Rocky Mountains to . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 

Ostrea congesta, occurrence of........................ 42 

plate showing . .. .. .. . .. .. . .. . .. .. .. .. .. . .. .. .. .. .. 46 

Permian rocks, occurrence of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 

Pierre clay, occurrence und character of .............. 18,41 

Pine, Rocky Mountain, size and distribution of .. .. .. 63 

Pine Ridge, Brule clay ut ... · .......................... 37, 38 

cliffs of Arikaree formation on, view of. . . . . . . . . . . 30 

section from Black Hills to........................ 46 

view of............................................ 18 

Pinus ponderosa, size and distribution of . . .. . .. .. . .. . 63 

Pipy concretions in Arikaree formation, view of...... 28 

Pumpkinseed Creek, course, character, and tributaries 

of.......................................... 51 

Pumpkinseed Valley, irrigation h1..... ............... 56 

springs in.......................................... 49 

topography of . .. .. .. .. .. . .. .. . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 12 

Rainfall, diagram showing._........................... 62 

Redington, conglomerate near, view of............... 24 

formations near .. .. . .. .. .. . .. .. . .. . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . 37 

Redington Gap, formations at and near............... 31 

Gering formation near, thickness of............... 29 

section at.......................................... 36 

Rocky i\Iountain pine, size and distribution of........ 63 

Rock)· Mountains, section from Omaha to .. .. . .. .. . .. 18 

Round Top, section from Adelia station to............ 39 

Rutland, fault in Gering formation ncar, view of..... 30 

Sand dunes, occurrence of ............................ 15,23 

SrLlld hills, occurrence and character of............... 13 

view of ....... :.................................... 22 

Scotts Bluff, altitude of. ............................... 11, 12 

badlands 11t foot of, view of .. .. .. .. .. . .. .. . .. .. ... 40 

Brule cluy at...................................... 37 

Gering formation near ........................ :. .. 36 

section at.......................................... 38 

views of ......................... ~ ................. 12,38 

Sheep Mountain, section at .. .. .. .. . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 36 

Signal Butte, formation at ............................ · 36 

section at.......................................... 36 

Sioux County, section in southwest corner of......... 30 

Smokestack Hock, conglomerate at, thickness of . . . . . 29 

views of ........................................... 14, 26 

Snake Creek, course and character of................. 52 
INDEX. 69 

Page. 

Soldier Creek, measurement of. ... -- ...... --._--_..... 53 

Sowbelly Canyon, butte of Arikaree formation in, 

vie'v of ............................ :. ...... . 

Spoon Butte, section from Sturdivant ranch to .. _. __ . 

Springs, characteristic features of, diagram showing_. 

26 

28 

49 

occurrence and character of._ .. _ .. ____ .. __ .. __ . _ .. 48-49 

Squaw Creek, measurement of _. ____ .. ___ . __ . _ .. __ . _ .. 

Streams, occurrence and character of. ________ .. __ ._ .. 

Sturdivant ranch, section from Spoon Butte to . __ .. _. 

Swezey, C. D, and Loveland, G. A., cited on rainfalL. 

Table-land, topographic features of . __ ... __ . __ . _ ... _ .. 

Tertiary grit. See Ogalalla formation. 

53 

50-54 

28 

62 

10 

Titauotherium, occurrence of_. ___________ . _____ ... __ . 41 

Titanotherium robustum, view of---------·- _____ ----- 44 

Timber, amount and character of_. __ .. _ .. _. ______ ... _ 62-j)3 

distribution of, map showing.-------.------------- 64 

Toadstool Park, view of.. ___ . ________ -- __ . __ ._ .. __ ---.. 44 

Topography, features of . _. _ .. ______ . ____ .. _. __ . _____ . _ 9-14 

Twin Sisters, formations at and near __ . ____ .. __________ 32-33 

view of .. ____ . __ . _. ___ . _. __ . ___ . _ .. _ .. __ . _ ..... ___ . 16 

Underground waters, general conditions governing __ 4&--44 

horizons yielding._ .. _____ .... ___ ._._ .. _. ____ . _____ 44-45 

in upper Missouri region, map showing factors 

bearing on prospects of. _ :. _ .... ___ ... __ .. _ 48 

map showing distribution of._. ______ ._ .. __ ._._. __ . 46 

occurrence of deep-seated ..... ---- .. ___ ........... 45-48 

See also Artesian. 

Page. 

Upper Missouri region, map showing factors bearing 

on prospects of underground water in ___ . 48 

Volcanic ash, occurrence of.-- ...... -.-- .. -... ----. 35,42-43 

Wabaunsee formation, occurrence of. .. -..... -.. -.... _ 20 

Waters, deep-seated, occurrence of. ... ----- ..... --.--. 45-48 

Waters, underground, general conditions governing .. 43-44 

horizons yielding ...... -.. -.. -.. -- .. -.--.-- ....... -· 44-45 

in upper ·Missouri region, map showing factors 

bearing on prospects of. . _ ................... _... 48 

map showing distribution of. __ ..... _ .. _ ..... ___ ._ 46 

occurrence of deep-seated .... _ .................... 45-48 

West Ash Creek, measurement of-----------··----'-·- 53 

White Clay Creek, measurement of .. _: .... __ . _ .. _ .. _ _ 53 

White River, course, character, and discharge of __ . _ _ 53 

tributaries of . ___ . ____ .. _ ..... _ .. _ ......... _....... 54 

'Vhite River Basin, irrigation in ...................... 57--59 

irrigation ditches in, list of.._._ .. ___ ._._ .. -.- ...... 58-59 

topography of--------·-···------------------------ 12-13 

"\\rhite River region, irrigation map of Niobrara River 

and Hot Creek regions and. __ . ___ ......... 56. 

Wildcat Mountain, altitude of._ .. _ .. _ .. _ ........ -..... 11 

Arikarec formation at, thickness of............... 27 

section at ..... _ ........ _ .............. -........ -... 24 

Wilson, J. M., aid by-----·------·--------------------- 9 

Wind erosion in Gering formation, plate showing . . . . 16 

Windmill, irrigation by means of._ .. _____ --·- .. __ .... 62 

Youngfclt, E. T. stream measurements by ......... 52,~3,55 

() 

PUBLICATIONS OF UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 

[Professional PaperNo. Ji.) 

The serial publications of the United States Geological Survey consist of (1) Annual Reports, 

(2) Monographs, (3) Professional Papers, (4) Bulletins, (5) Mineral Resources, (6) Water-Supply 

and Irrigation Papers, (7) Topographic Atlas of the Unlted States-folios and separate sheets 

thereof, (8) Geologic Atlas of the United States-folios thereof. The classes numbered 2, 7, and 8 

are sold at cost of publication; the others are distributed free. A circular giving complete lists 

may be had on application. 

The Bulletins, Professional Papers, and Water-Supply Papers treat of a variety of subjects, 

and the total number issued is large. They have therefore been classified into the following series: 

A, Economic geology; B, Descriptive geology; C, Systematic geology and paleontology; D, Petrography and mineralogy; E, Chemistry and physics; F, Geography; G, Miscellaneous; H, Forestry; 

I, Irrigation; ,T, Water storage; K, Pumping water; L, Quality of water; M, General hydrographic 

investigations: N, Water power; 0, Underground waters; P, Hydrographic progress reports. This 

paper is the thirty-first in Series B, and the twenty-first in series 0, the complete lists of which 

follow. (B=Bulletin, PP=Professional Paper, WS=Water-Supply Paper.) 

SERIES B, DESCR.IPTIVE GIWLOGY. 

B 23. Observations on the junction between the Eastern sandstone and the Keweenaw series on Keweenaw Point, 

Lake Superior, by R. D. Irving and T. C. Chamberlin. 1885. 124 pp., 17 pls. 

B 33. Notes on geology of northern California, by J. S. Diller. 1886: 23 pp. (Out of stock.) 

B 39. The upper beaches and deltas of Glacial Lake Agassiz, by Warren Upham. 1887. 84 pp., 1 pl. (Out of stock.) 

B 40. Changes in river courses in Washington Territory due to glaciation, by Bailey Willis. 1887. 10 pp., 4 pls. (Out 

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B 4.'i. The present condition of knowledge of the geology of Texas, by R. T Hill. 1887. 94 pp (Out of stock.) 

B o3. The geology of Nantucket, by N. S. Shaler. 1889. 55 pp., 10 pis. (Out of stock.) 

B 07. A geological reconnaissance in muthwestern Kansas, by Robert Hay. 1890. 49 pp., 2 pls. 

B 58. The glacial boundary in western Pennsylvania, Ohh, Kentucky, ;Indiana, and Illinois, by G. F. Wright, with 

introduction by T. C. Chamberlin. 1890. 112 pp., 8 pls. (Out of stock.) 

B 67. The relations of the tmps of the Newark system in the New Jersey region, by N.H. Darton. 1890. 82 pp. 

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B 104. Glaciation of the Yellowstone Valley north of the Park, by W. H. Weed 1893. 41 pp., 4 pls. 

B 108. A geological reconnaissance in central Washington, by I. C. Russell. 1893. 108 pp., 12 pls. (Out of stock.) 

B 119. A geological reconnaissance in northwest Wyoming, by G. H. Eldridge. 1894. 72 pp., 4 pis. 

B 137. The geology of the Fort Riley Military Reservation and vicinity, Kansas, by Robert Hay. 1896. 35 pp., 8 p1s. 

B 144. The moraines of the Missouri Coteau and their attendant deposits, by J. E. Todd. 1896. 71 pp., 21 pls. 

B 158. The moraines of southeastern South Dakota and their attendant deposits, by J. E. Todd. 1899. 171 pp., 27 pls. 

B 159. The geology of eastern Berkshire County, Massachusetts, by B. K. Emerson. 1899. 139 pp., 9 pis. 

B 165. Contrilmtions 'to the geology of Maine, by H. S. Williams and II. E. Gregory. 1900. 212 pp., 14 pls. 

WS 70. Geology and water resources of the Patrick and Goshen Hole quadrangles in eastern Wyoming and western 

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B 199. Geology and water resources of the Snake River Plains of Idaho, by I. C. Russell. 1902. 19'2 pp., 25 pis. 

PP 1. Preliminary report on the Ketchikan mining district, Alaska, with an introductory sketch of the geology of 

southeastern Alaska, by A. H. Brooks. 1902. 120 pp., 2 pls. 

PP 2. Reconnaissance of the northwestern portion of Seward Peninsula, Alaska, by A. J. Collier. 190'~. 70 pp., 11 pis. 

PP 3. The geology and petrography of Crater Lake National Park, by J. S. Diller and H. B. Patton. 191J'Z. 167 pp., 

19 pis. 

PP 10. Reconnaissance from Fort Hamlin to Kotzebue Sound, Alaska, by way of Dall, Kanuti, Allen, and Kowak 

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PP 11. C.:lays of the United States east of the Mississippi River, by Heinrich Ries. 1903. 298 pp., 9 pls. 

PP 12. Geology of the Globe copper district, Arizona, by F. L. Ransome. 1903. 168 pp., 27 pis. 

PP 13. Drainage modifications in southeastern Ohio and adjacent parts of West Virginia and Kentucky, by w. G. 

Tight. 1903. 111 pp, 17 pis. 

B 208. Descriptive geology of Nevada south of the fortieth parallel and adjacent portions of California, by J. E. 

Spurr. 1903. 229 pp., 8 pls. 

B 209. Geology of Ascutney :Mountain, Vermont, by R. A. Daly. 1903. 12'2 pp., 7 pis. 

WS 78. Preliminary report on artesian basins in southwestern Idaho and sontneastern Oregon, by I. C. Russell 

1903. 51 pp., 2 pis. 

PP 15. Mineral resources of the llfount Wrangell district, Alaska, by W. C. Mendenhall and F. C. Schrader 1903. 

- pp., 10 pis. 

PP 17. Preliminary report on the geology and water resources of Nebraska west of the one hundred and third 

meridian, by N. H. Darton. 1908. 6!l pp., 4~ pis. 
II PUBLICATIONS OF UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 

SERIES. o, UNDERGROUND WATERS. 

WS 4. A reconnaissance in southeastern Wll.9hington, by I. C. Russell. 1897. 96 pp., 7 pis. (Out of stock.) 

WS 6. Underground waters of southwestern Kansas, by Erasmus Haworth. 1897. 65 pp., 12 pis. (Out of stock.) 

WS 7. Seepage waters of northern Utah, by Samuel Fortier. 1897: 50 pp., 3 pis. (Out of stock.) 

WS 12. Underground waters of sonthettstern Nebraska, by N.H. Darton. 1898. 56 pp., 21 pis. (Out of stock.) 

WS 21. Wells of northern Indiana, by Frank Lever(ltt. 1899. 82 pp., 2 pis. 

WS 26. Wells of southern Indiantt (continuation of No. 21), by Frank Leverett. 1899. 64 pp. 

WS 30. Water resources of the lower peninsula of .Michigan, by A. C. Lane. 1899. 97 pp., 7 pis. (Out of stock.) 

WS 31. Lower Michigan mineral waters, by A. C. Lane. 1899. 97 pp., 4 pls. 

WS 34. Geology and water resources of a portion of southeastern South Dakota, by J. E. Todd. 1900. 34 pp., 19 pis. 

WS 53. Geology and water resources of Nez Perces County, Idaho, Pt. I, by I. C. Russell. 1901. 86 pp., 10 pis. 

WS 54. Geology and water resources of Nez Perces County, Idaho, Pt. II, by I. C. Russell. 1901. 87-141 pp. 

WS 55. Geology and water resources of a portion of Yakima County, Washington, by G. 0. Smith. 1901. 68 pp., 7 pis. 

WS 57. Preliminary list of deep borings in the United States, Pt. I, by N. H. Darton. 1902. 60 pp. (Out of stock.) 

WS 59. Development and application of water in southern California, Pt. I, by J. B. Lippincott. 1902. 95 pp., 11 pis. 

(Out of stock.) 

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WS 61. Preliminary list of deep borings in the United States, Pt. II, by N.H. Darton. 1902. 67 pp. (Out of stock.) 

WS 67. The motions of •nHlcrground waters, by C. S. Slichter. 1902. 106 pp., 8 pis. 

B 199. Geology and water resources of the Snake River Plains of Idaho, by I. C. Russell. 1902. 192 pp., 25 pis. 

WS 77. Water resources of l\Iolokai, Hawaiian Islands, by Waldemttr Lindgren. 1903. · 62 pp., 4 pis. 

WS 78. Preliminary report on artesian basins in southwestern Idaho ~tnd southeastern Oregon, by I. C. Russell. 1903. 51 

pp., 2 pis. 

PP ,~ Preliminary report on the geology and w~tter resources of Nebraska west of the one hundred ttnd third meridian, 

by N.H. Darton. 1903. 69 pp., 43 pis. 

The following papers also relate to this subject: Underground waters of Arkansas Valley in eastern Colorado, by G. K. 

Gilbert, in Seventeenth Annual, Part II; Preliminary report on artesian waters of a portion of the Dakotas, by N. II. 

Darton, in Seventeenth Annual, Part II; Water resources of Illinois, by Frank Leverett, in Seventeenth Annual, Part II; 

Water resources of Indiana and Ohio, by Frank Leverett, in Eighteenth Annual, Part IV; New developments in well 

boring and irrigation in eastern South Dakoltt, by N.H. Darton, in Eighteenth Annual, Part IV; Rock waters of Ohio, 

by Edward Orton, in Nineteenth Annual, Part IV; Artesian-well prospects ·in the Atlantic coastltl plain region, by N.H. 

Darton, Bulletin No. 138. 

Correspondence should be addressed to 

THE DIRECTOR, 

UNI'l'ED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY, 

'\V ASHINGTON, D. C. 

AuGUST, 1903.