Water'-Bappl:y and Irrigation Paper~~ 78 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

, CHARLES D. WALCOTT, DIBIICTOB 

PRELIMINARY REPORT 

ON 

ARTESIAN BASINS 

IN 

SOUTHWESTERN IDAHO AND SOUTHEASTERN OREGON 

ISRAEL 0. RUSSELL 

WASHINGTON 

GOVERNHENT PRINTING Oli'FlCJII 

1903 
PUBLICATIONS OF UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 

The 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) Topography Atlas of the United States, folios and separate Rheets 

thereof; (8) Geologic Atlas of 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; J, Water storage; K, Pumping water; L, Quality of water; M, General hydrographic investigations; N, Water power; 0, Underground waters; P, Hydrographic 

progress reports. Complete lists of papers relating to water snpply and allied subjects follow. 

(B=Bulletin, PP=Professional Paper, WS=Water-Supply Paper.) 

SERIES I-IRRIGATION. 

WS 2. Irrigation near Phoenix, Ariz., by A. P. Davis. 1897. 98 pp., 31 pis. and maps. 

WS 5. Irrigation practice on the Great Plains, by E. B. Cowgill. 1897. 39 pp., 11 pis. 

WS 9. Irrigation near Greeley, Colo., by David Boyd. 1897. 90 pp., 21 pls. 

WS 10. Irrigation in Mesilla Valley, New Mexico, by F. C. Barker. 1898. 51 pp., 11 pis. 

WS 13. Irrigation systems in Texas, by W. F. Hutson. 1898. 68 pp., 10 pls. 

WS 17. Irrigation near Bakersfield, CaL, by C. E. Grunsky. 1898. 96 pp., 16 pl~. 

WS 18. Irrigation near Fresno, CaL, by C. E. Grunsky. 1898. 94 pp., 14pls. 

WS 19. Irrigation near Merced, CaL, by C. E. Grunsky. 1899. 59 pp., 11 pis. 

WS 23. Water-right problems of Bighorn Mountains, by Elwood Mead. 1899. 62 pp., 7 pls. 

WS 32. Water resources of Porto Rico, by H. M. Wilson. 1899. 48 pp., 17 pls. and maps. 

WS 48. Conveyance of water in irrigation canals, flumes, and pipes, by Samuel Fortier. 1901. 

86 pp., 15 pls. 

WS 70. Geology and water resources of the Patrick and Goshen Hole quadrangles, Wyoming, 

by G. I. Adams. 1902. 50 pp., 11 pis. 

WS 71. Irrigation systems of Texas, by T. U. Taylor. 1902. 137 pp., 9 pls. 

WS 74. Water resources of the State of Colorado, by A. L. Fellows. 1900. 151 pp., 14 pls. 

The following papers also rehite especially to irrigation: Irrigation in India, by H. M. Wilson, 

in Twelfth Annual, Part II; two papers on irrigation engineering, by H. M. Wilson, in Thirteenth Annual, Part III. 

SERIES J-WATER STORAGE. 

WS 33. Storage of water on Gila River, Arizona, by J. B. Lippincott. 1900. 98 pp., 33 pls. 

WS 40. The Austin dam, by Thomas U. Taylor. 1900. 51 pp., 16 pls. 

WS 45. Water storage on Cache Creek, California, by A. E. Chandler. 1901. 48 pp., lOpls. 

WS 46. Physical characteristics of Kern River, California, by F. H. Olmsted, and Reconnaissance of Yuba River, California, by Marsden Manson. 1901. 57 pp., 8 pls. 

WS 58. Storage of water on Kings River, California, by John B. Lippincott. 1902. lOOpp., 32 pls. 

WS 68. Water storage in Truckee Basin, California-Nevada, by L. H. Taylor. 1902. 90 pp., 8 pls. 

WS 73. Water storage on Salt River, Arizona, by A. P. Davis. 1902. 54 pp., 25 pis. 

The following paper also should be noted under t.his heading: Reservoirs for irrigation, by 

J.D. Schuyler, in Eighteenth Annjlal, Part IV. 

SERIES K-PUMPTNG wATER. 

WS 1. Pumping water for irrigation, by Herbert M. Wilson. 1896. 57 pp., 9 pls. 

WS 8. Windmills for irrigation, by E. C. Murphy. 1897. 49 pp., 8 pls. 

WS 14. New tests of certain pumps and water lifts used in irrigation, by Ozni P. Hood. 1898. 

9lpp., 1 pl. 

WS 20. Experiments with windmills, by T. 0. Perry. 1899. ll7 pp., 12 pls. 

WS 29. Wells and windmills in Nebraska, by E. H. Barbour. 1899. 85 pp., 27 pls. 

WS 41. The windmill; its efficiency and economic use, Part I, by E. C. Murphy. 1901. 72 pp., 

14 pls. 

WS 42. The windmill, Part II (continuation of No. 41). 1901. 73-147 pp., 15-16 pls. 

(Continued on third page of cover.) 

ma 78-2 
Water-Supply and Irrigation Paper No. 78 8 . f B, DeScriptive Geology, 29 enes I_ 0, Underground Waters, 20 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

CHARLES D. WALCOTT, DIRECTOR 

PRELIMINARY REPORT 

ON 

ARTESIAN BASINS 

IN 

SOUTHWESTERN IDAHO AND SOUTHEASTERN OREGON 

BY 

ISRAI~:.L Ct RTJS~~:.LL 

WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 

1903 

CONTENTS. 

Letter of transmittaL _______________ _ 

Introduction _________________________________ · ___________________ . ____ --.-

Conditions on which the flow of artesian wells depend ___________________ _ 

Surface indications of the presence of subsurface water under pressure __ -_ Rocks of the region examined ___________________________________________ _ 

Sedimentary rocks ____________________________________________ --- --- -

Igneous rocks _________________ " _____________________________________ _ 

Volcanic rocks_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _______ _ 

Plutonic or deep-seated igneous rocks ___________________________ _ 

Geological structure ____________________________________________________ _ 

Artesian basins ___________________________________________________ -- - ----

Lewis artesian basin ________________________________________________ _ 

Springs _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _________ _ 

Mountain Home ____________________________________________ _ 

Boise __________________________________ -_ -- -- --- - -- ---- --- ---

Salmon River_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 

Little Valley _______________________________________________ _ 

Bruneau Valley _____________________________________________ _ 

Walters Butte ______________________________________________ _ 

Enterprise _______________________________ ~ __________________ _ 

Sands ______________________________________________________ _ 

Owyhee Canyon ____________________________________________ _ 

Vale ________________________________________________________ _ 

WestfalL ____________________________________________________ _ 

Beulah _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _______ -- - ----

Drilled wells _________ _' ____________________________________ - - -- - - -

Boise ____________________________________ - _ -- -- --- ---- -- - ----

Bruneau Valley _____________________________________________ _ 

Little Valley _______________________________________________ _ 

Guffey _____________________________________________________ _ 

Central _____________________________________________________ _ 

Enterprise __________________________________________________ _ 

Ontario ________________________ - - - ----- ----- ------- ---- - ----- Vale_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ______________ _ 

Summary ___________________________________________________ _ 

Eastward extension _______________________________ .. _____________ _ 

Otis artesian basin_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ . _________________________ _ 

Harney artesian basin _________________ . _ _ _ _ _ ________ . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ______ _ 

Springs _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ___ .. ________________________________________ _ 

Burns _ " ______________ . ____________________________ - __ - ------

Little Sage Hen Valley _____________________________________ _ 

Silver Lake _________________________________________________ _ 

Harney Lake _______________________________________________ _ 

Ma.lheur Lake _ _ _ _ _ ____________________________________ _ 

Summary·--·--·-·--·-----··---------------------------------

3 

Page. 

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39 

39 

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39 

39 
4 CONTENTS. 

Artesian basins-Continued. 

Harney artesian basin-Continued. 

Drilled wells _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ . _____________________________ _ 

Harney_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ________________________________________ _ 

Burns __________________________ -- _ ----- _ -- _ --------• - -- - ----

Summary ___________________________________________________ _ 

Whitehorse artesian basin ___________________________________________ _ 

Artesian wells in alluvial deposits _______________________________________ _ 

Size of drill holes, the casing of wells, etc _______________________________ _ 

Preservation of well records _______ .-- _____________________________________ _ 

Laws__________________________________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ___ _ 

Literature ______________________________________________________________ _ 

Index ____________________________________________________________________ _ 

Page. 

40 

40 

41 

41 

43 

44 

45 

46 

47 

50 

53 
ILLUSTRATIONS. 

Page. 

PLATE I. Map showing position of area under discussion ____ . ____ . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 9 

II. Sketch map of portions of Oregon and Idaho, showing artesian 

basins ______ . ____________________________ .. ______ . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 16 

FIG. 1. Cross section of two dishes with sand between . ___ . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 11 

2. Ideal cross section of a typical artesian basin charged with water 

from above ________________________ · ___________ . _. ___ . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 11 

3. Ideal cross section of an artesian basin charged with water from 

below ___________________________________________________ . ____ . 13 

5 

LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL. 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, 

UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY, 

DIVISION OF HYDROGRAPHY, 

Washington, D. C., December 2, 1902. 

SIR: I have the honor to transmit herewith a manuscript prepared 

by Prof. Israel C. Ru·ssell, and to request that it be printed as one of 

the series of Water-Supply and Irrigation Papers. The paper relates to work carried on by Professor Russell during the summers 

of 1901 and 1902, and contains a description of the geologic structure 

of southwestern Idaho and southeastern Oregon, with special reference to the occurrence of underground waters. The artesian basins 

are described as far as these are known, and facts are assembled a8 to 

the probabilities of obtaining deep or flowing wells. 

The information · has particular value at this time, when great 

interest is being displayed in the reclamation of the arid lands. 

All facts which assist in procuring water are eagerly sought, and the 

data collected by Professor Russell are particularly important in the 

development of a iarge extent of vacant public land. 

Very respectfully, 

Hon. CHARLES D. WALCOTT, 

F. H. NEWELL, 

Hydrographer in Charge. 

D·irector United States Geological Sur1..1ey. 

7 

U.S.GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

0 

0 

L.L.POAT£8, EN6R.,N • 

MAP SHOWING POSITION OF AREA UNDER DISCUSSION 

Scale 

100 50 100 200 300mlles 
PRELIMINARY REPORT ON'ARTESIAN BASINS IN SOUTHWESTERN IDAHO AND SOUTHEASTERN OREGON. 

By ISRAEL C. RUSSELL. 

INTRODUCTION. 

During the summer of 1901 I made a geological reconnaissance in 

southern Idaho which covered, in a general way, the region embraced 

in the Snake River Plains from the boundary between Ada and 

Elmore counties eastward to Blackfoot.a The studies t}lus begun 

were continued in the summer of 1902, when p3.rts of Canyon and 

Owyhee eo unties, Idaho, and of Malheur and Harney counties, Oreg., 

were examined. The route traversed during the second reconnaissance followe{l Snake River from Guffey northwestward to the mouth 

of Owyhee River, in Idaho, and thence through Vale, Westfall, 

Beulah, Drewsey, Harney, Burns, Narrows, Diamond, Smith, Mule, 

Alvord Valley, Jordan Valley, etc., in Oregon, to Rockville, on the 

west border of Owyhee County, Idaho. From Rockville the return to 

Boise was by way of Caldwell and Nampa. The route followed was 

chosen for the purpose of passing through t,he greatest number of 

valleys where artesian conditions might most reasonably be expeeted 

to exist and where the largest areas of good land are available for 

agrieulture. 

Each of the jmuneys referred to above was a rapid reeonnaissance, 

having for its principal objeet the discovery of loealities where flowing water ean be obtained by drilling wells. In addition to gathering 

facts bearing on the question of au artesian water supply, as much 

attention as the time available would permit was given to the study of 

the general geology of the eountry traversed, the surface water supply, 

soil conditions~ etc. The results of my examinations may, then, be 

divided into two parts-namely, that pertaining directly to artesian 

basins and that relating to geologieal history, topographical develop_ 

ment., etc. As the search for artesian basins, especially during the 

journey mad_e in 1902, was far more suceessful than I had hoped, it 

a A report on this reconnaisSance, entitled Geology and Water Resources of the Snake River 

Plains of Idaho, has been pubhshed as Bulletin No. 199 by the Umted States Geological Survey. 

A copy of this report may be had without eharge by applying to the Director of the United · 

States Geological Survey, Washington, D. C. 

9 
10 ARTESIAN BASINS IN IDAHO AND OREGON. [NO. 78. 

seems advisable to present a preliminary report, with the view of 

giving early information concerning the artesian basins to the people 

living in the region examined and later to prepare a more definite 

record of the geological and geographical facts observed. 

During the reconnaissance of 1901 it was found that the geological 

conditions in the Snake River Canyon from near Glenns Ferry westward to the boundary between Elmore and Ada counties and in 

Bruneau and I.ittle valleys are such that a surface flow of water can 

reasonably be expected where the surface elevation is not too great if 

wells are drilled to the proper depth. The artesian basin crossed by 

the portion of Snake River just mentioned was for convenience 

named the Lewis artesian basin, but its extension west of the boundary 

between Elmore and Ada counties was not examined. The western 

portion of the basin was made the first subject of study during the 

following field season, and, as will be stated later, it was found to 

reach westward to beyond the Idaho-Oregon boundary. 

The reconnaissance in southeastern Oregon showed that if wells are 

properly drilled, a surface flow of water may reasonably be expected 

in at least three separate valleys in addition to the basin which is 

crossed by Snake River. These are Otis Valley, situated about 6 

miles north of Drewsey; the broad valley in which Malheur and 

Harney lakes are situated, known in part as Harney Valley; and 

Whitehorse Valley, situated about.10 miles east of the higher portion 

of Stein Mountain. The basins in which these valleys are situated 

will be termed in this report the Otis artesian basin, the Harney artesian basin, and the WhHeho·rse artesian basin, respect.ively. 

Before presenting the facts which are the basis of the conclusion 

that in each of the basins just named a surface flo"~ of water can be 

had by drilling, it will, I think, be of assistance to review briefly the 

leading conditions governing the flow of artesian wells. 

CONDITIONS ON WHICH THE FLOW OF ARTESIAN WELLS 

DEPENDS. 

The term artesian well, as commonly employed, signifies a well 

which overflows upon the surface. The leading conditions favoring 

the rise and overflow of water from wells may perhaps be best indicated by describing the essential features of a typjcal artesian basin 

of the simplest character. 

In what is properly termed an artesian basin, the layers of rock are 

bent downward, so as to resemble a pile of shallow plate-shaped 

dishes, placed one within another. One or more of the beds of rock 

is porous and allows water, supplied by rain on its upturned and 

exposed margin, to percolate into it. Above and below the wat~rcharged layer are elose-textured beds, like clay, which prevent the 

escape of the water in the bed between them. The leading conditions 
RUSSELL.] CONDITIONS OF FLOW. 11 

which characterize artesian basins will be reproduced on a small scale 

if one pan is placed within another, and the two are separated by a layer 

of sand, and the spaces between the sand grains are filled with water. 

If a hole is drilled in the bottom of the uppermost pan, water will rise 

- from below and overflow until the level of the water in each pan is 

the same. This is illustrated by the following cross section (fig. 1), 

whic~ represents two pans, with a layer of sand between them, as 

they would appear if cut across and one-half removed. The pans in 

such an experiment represent the compact or impervious layers, and 

the sand the porous or pervious bed, in an artesian basin. 

' !§Wf!¥" 

FIG. 1.-Cross sec+ion of two dishes with layer of sand between; to illustrate the leading essen. 

tial features of an artesian basin. 

In the following diagram (fig. 2) an ideal cross section is presented 

through an artesian basin which may be assumed to be 50 or more 

miles in diameter. The rocks are ·in layers or strata, and their combined thickness, we will assume, is 1,000 feet. A cross section taken 

in any direction through the pile of saucer-shaped beds (as is the cas~ 

with the experiment with the pans referred to above) would be 

essentially the same. In the diagram (fig. 2) Band C represent compaet and impervious beds, such as clay or shale; and A represents a 

porous bed, such as sand, open-textured sandstone, or fissured and 

broken rock. The beds, it will be noted, are depressed in their central parts, but about their edges eome to the surface. Under these 

conditions water falling as rain on the exposed margin of the· pervious 

bed and the water from streams, etc., would percolate into it until it 

was water filled. If, now, a hole drilled in the central part of the 

FIG. 2.-Ideal section illustrating the chief conditions requisite to artesian wells. 

basin, as at D or E, reaches the pervious bed the pressure of water 

at a higher level will cause the water in the well to rise and overflow 

at the surface, and a flowing artesian well will result. 

If, in the case just cited, no additional water should come to the 

exposed margin of the pervious bed, the well drilled at D or E would 

decrease in volume and finally cease to flow when the water in the 

porous bed, or so-called reservoir, was lowered so as to be on a level 

with the·sul'face at the localities referred to. If, on th,e other ·hand, 

rain falls on the exposed margin of the pervious layer, or streams 

bring water to it, a continuous diseharge from the well would result; 

as will be seen, one well in an artesian basin might be eonspicuously 
12 ARTESIAN BASINS IN IDAHO AND OREGON. [NO. 78. 

successful, while many wells might permit of such a freedom of escape 

of the water in a pervious bed as to practically ruin all of them. 

In the illustration just presented, but one pervious bed was considered. In natu1·e several such beds may be present in a single artesian basin, and several wells, drilled to different depths, might be 

successful, each well being _supplied by a different pervious bed. 

The height to which the water will rise above the surface opening 

of an artesian well depends on the height of the water in the raised 

border of the water-charged bed from which it derives its supply. 

For example, in fig. 2 the lowest point in the rim of the watercharged bed is at A, and if the pipe in the well drilled at D orE be 

carried up into the air and the end not closed, the water will rise in 

it until it reaches the level of A. The height to which the water will 

rise in an open tube attached to the surface opening of an artesian well 

is termed the artesian head. At all points within an artesian basin 

below the level of the artesian head water may be expected to rise 

to the surface and overflow when a well is d1·illed and properly cased. 

But if the surface of the ground is above the horizon of the outcrop 

of water-bearing bed, the pressure on the water will not be sufficient 

~o force it to the surface, even if a drill hole is put down and properly 

cased. The height of the su1·face within an artesian basin may thus 

furnish the controlling condition on which success in searching for 

artesian water would depend. For this reason the pioneer well in an 

artesian basin should evidently be drilled at the lowest available 

locality in order to determine the artesian head. In making this test 

the bottom of the casing in the well should be just above the waterbearing stratum and securely packed on the out.side so as to prevent 

leakage. If a well has a surface flow the height to which the water 

will rise above the ground may be learned by attaching a flexible hose 

pipe, or, in fact, any kind of a tube, to the upper end of the casing 

of the well and carrying it up a ladder or trestle until the water 

stands at the upper end, but does not overflow. a When two or more 

water-charged layers are present in an artesian basin, wells obtaining water from diffe1·ent layers may have different artesian heads. 

Another necessary surface condition in reference to most artesian 

basins is that the margins of the porous beds shall rise to the surface 

and be exposed, so as to b~come charged with water from rain, melting snow, streams, etc. The amount of precipitation is also an 

important factor, especially in reference to the number of wells that 

may advantageously be put down in an artesian basin; but even in 

regions having an arid climate the porous beds beneath the surface 

so situated as to receive water at theil: edges, and from which its 

escape is prevented, will be found to be water charged. 

As the pervious beds in an artesian basin commonly descend to a 

«Practical suggestions in this connection are presented in the papers No.3 and No.4 in the list 

at the end of this report. 
RUSS;ELL.] CONDITIONS OF J:!'LOW. 13 

considerable depth below the earth's surface, the water which escapes 

from them when drill holes are put down is usually warmer than the 

water in neighboring dug wells. The reason for this is that the temperature of the earth increases with depth below its surface, as is 

discussed below. The temperature of water in a pervious bed is 

therefore regulated by the depth of the bed below the surface, and 

several flowing wells drilled in the central part of a basin should yield 

water with essentially the same temperature. 

In the case of artesian basins generally, the water supply is furnished by rain and streams and enters the pervious beds at their outm·ops-that is, the water descends into the pervious beds from above. 

There are instances, however, in which the water rises from below. 

If a basin exists, as already explained, water may be supplied to the 

pervious beds either by the upward leakage of a lower pervious bed, 

or, as is illustrated in the following diagram, by fissures in the rocks 

beneath. 

The water which· rises through deep fissures in the earth's crust is 

commonly hot, and when it appears at the surface forms hot springs. 

In a cas.e like that illustrated by fig. 3 the pervious bed is charged by 

FIG. 3.-Ideal section of an artesian basin charged with water rising from below through a fissure. 

water rising through the rocks bene~th U, and artesian wells supplied 

by it would have a higher temperature than under normal conditions 

would be expected from their depth. More than this, several wells 

drilled in the central portion of a basin which is supplied in the manner 

just explained might vary greatly in temperature according to their 

distance from the subterranean source of supply, although deriving 

their water from the same pervious bed. The artesian head in the case 

just cited would depend on the height of the water stm·ed in the pervious bed, but could not exceed the pressure on the incoming water from 

a deep source. Where there is a subterranean source of water supply for an artesian basin there is probably always an additional 

supply coming from above, so that both the pressure.;. _and temperature 

of the water obtained by drilling will be regulated" by an adjustment 

between these two leading conditions. 

There are other conditiQns than those just considered which permit 

a surface flow of water when wells are drilled, but so far as the 

artesian basins to be described later are concerned, it is unnecessary 

to consider them at this time. 

Even when a well-defined artesian basin is present there may be 

qualifying or adverse conditions which will prev~nt a surface flow of 
14 ARTESIAN BASINS IN IDAHO AND OREGON. (NO. 78. 

water where one might reasonably be expected. These ''accidents," 

as they may perhaps be termed, are caused by the fact that sheets of 

rock which are open textured, and consequently pervious, in one portion may become close textured and practically impervious in another 

portion. Also, an impervious bed may be fractured so as to allow 

the water to escape. In Idaho and Oregon the rocks which are bent 

so as to form basins are at times traversed by dikes; that is, more or 

less vertical sheets of rock formed by molten material forced upward 

into fissures from deep within the earth's m·ust, and cooling and 

hardening. There are still other locally adverse circumstances which 

may exist in even the best-defined artesian basins. These and 

other questions bearing on the success or failure of artesian wells 

have been discussed by several writers, and for a more complete and 

critical presentation of the subject than it is desirable to attempt at 

this time the reader is referred to the publications mentioned at the 

end of this report. 

SURFACE INDICATIONS OF THE PRESENCE OE, SUBSURFACE WATER UNDER PRESSURE. 

The presence of artesian conditions is most frequently inferred 

from the structure of a basin, but confirmation of the supposition 

that water under pressure exists below the surface may frequently be 

had from t.he occurrence of warm springs. Such springs may also 

furnish evidence in reference to the depth to which a well should be 

drilled in order to penetrate the water-charged stratum. 

The water which occurs in artesian basins has descended from the 

surface, and as the temperature of the earth increases with depth, the 

deeper the water has penetrated the rocks the higher will be its temperature. The increase in the temperature of the earth below a depth 

of about 50 feet in temperate regions is in general about 1 o F. for 

each 60 feet, but there is considerable evidence for concluding that 

the rate of increase in southern Idaho and t.he adjacfmt part of Oregon 

is approximately 1 oF. for each 45 feet in depth. a In temperate latitudes the increase in the temperature of the earth should be reckoned 

from a depth of 50 feet below the earth's surface, because the seasonal 

changes in temperature extend to that depth. At the horizon referred 

to there is a constant temperatui·e which agrees with the mean annual 

temperature of the locality chosen. In the portfons of Idaho and 

Oregon under consideration the mean annual temperature is approximately 50° F. In tropical countries the depth to which seasonal 

changes of temperature extend is less and in arctic regions much 

greater than that just stat.ed. If, for example, a spring in the region 

referred to has a temperature of 65° F., or 15° above the t.emperature -------------~-~------------

aThe facts on which this conclusion is based are recorded in Bull. U.S. Geol. Survey No.l99, 

1002, pp. 173-174. 
RussELL.] SURFACE INDICATIONS OF SUBSURFACE WATER. 15 

of the stratum of no seasonal variation, it would be safe to conclude 

that the water rises from a depth of at least 675 feet below that 

stratum or 725 feet below the surface. As the freedom of escape of 

the waters of springs is usually obstructed, some allowance must be 

made for its cooling as it rises, so that in the same case just cited 725 

feet would indicate the minimum depth to which a drill hole wottld 

have to be. extended with the hope of penetrating rocks in which 

water existed under sufficient pressure to cause it to rise to the surface. 

In artesian basins there are apt to be localities wh~re there is an 

escape of the water to the surface, so as to form springs. In such 

instances the springs usually flow throughout the year without 

appreciable changes in volume or in temperature, and the water is 

above the mean annual temperature of the locality where it reaches 

the surface. Where the structure of the rocks suggests that an artesian 

basin is present, the occurrence of warm springs within the basin 

is an assurance that water is present under sufficient pressure to force 

. it to the surface in case wells are drilled. The warm springs referred 

to may be termed natural artesian wells, and their temperature indicates the depth of the water-charged bed below the surface, aud the 

elevation of the locality where they occur gives a minimum measure 

of the height of the artesian head. 

While warm springs (or those ranging in temperature from about 

60° to 100° F.) situated within a region which has the structural 

features of an artesian basin may be taken as evidence of the presence 

of a water-charged layer which would supply flowing wells, a hot 

spring (or one having a temperature of more than 100°) is not so favorable an indication. - Hot springs ordinarily rise from such a depth 

that even if they come from a well-defined water-charged layer it 

would be impracticable for most purposes for which artesian water is 

lised to reach it by drilling. Although the conditions which lead to 

t.he occurrence of hot springs are not well understood, owing to the 

depth from which their waters rise, there are reasons for believing 

that they are frequently supplied by fissures that penetrate deep into 

the earth. The irregularities of fissures are such as to preclude prediction as to where they occur. In the case of every hot spring, 

however, there is a chance that if a well is drilled near it, even to a 

moderate depth, a flow of water will be secured, but in such instances 

the flow of wat.er obtained should be classed as a "developed spring" 

rather than an artesian well. The fact, however, a.s previously explained, that water rising from a depth through fissures may charge 

the pervious beds in an artesian basin renders it evident that both 

warm and hot springs demand careful study in conducting a search 

for artesian water. 
16 ARTESIAN BASINS IN IDAHO AND OREGON. [NO. 78. 

ROCK~ OF THE REGION EXAMINED. 

A classification of the most common rocks of southwestern Idaho 

and southeastern Oregon, sufficiently accurate for the present, purpose, is as follows: 

· ~Conglomerate, sandstone (in part hardened so as to fonn 

Sedimentary rocks__ quartzite), shale, clay, sand. and gravel, together with 

beds of volanic dust and volcanic gravel or lapilli. 

Igneous rocks __ 

f 

{

Basalt. Lava flows _ _ _ Rhyolite. 

v 1 · k JA 1 s o m e n- o canw roc s -- -~Fragments ~Basalticlapilli. tioned above 

blown out Rhyolitic dust as fonning 

of volcanoes. and tuff. t sedimentary 

beds. 

{

The molten material like that extruded from 

Plutonic rocks _ _ _ volcanoes at the earth's surface, but which 

cooled below the surface in fissures, etc. 

SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 

The stratified roeks of the region examined, or those composed 

of fragments of older roeks which have been spread out in layers or 

strata by the waters of lakes and streams, comprise conglomerate 

or pudding stone; sandstones; soft, highly calcareous, usually nearly 

white shales; loose gravel, sand, white volcanic dust; and dark, usually 

yellowish, volcanic g~avel or lapilli. These beds were, for the most 

part, deposited in lakes during Tertiary time. 

Examples of the conglomerate and sandstones referred to may be 

seen in the hills near where the Owyhee joins Snake River, in the isolated hills near Vale, and in the conspicuous bluffs to the southeast of 

Malheur and Harney lakes, as well as many other localities. These 

rocks are usually dark yellow, but occasionally, as near ~arrows, are 

nearly white, and in some instances are sufficiently compact to be 

used for building stone. Associated with the layers of consolidated. 

pebbles and sand just referred to, and having a wide extent in both 

Idaho and Oregon, are soft, unconsolidated light-colored shales and 

marls, and thick beds of nearly white sand and light-colored clay. 

Beds of this general nature, aggregating more than 1,000 feet in thickness, underlie Snake River Valley between Glenns Ferry and Weiser, 

and form the conspicuous white bluff along each side of that stream. 

Similar beds occur also in the lower portion of the valley of Malheur 

River and beneath the rim rocks of the canyons on the west slope of 

Stein Mountain. Light colored, and in part greenish shales, outcrop on the west side of Alvorfl Valley, where they pass beneath the 

sheets of basalt forming the bold eastern face of Stein Mountain. Fine 

·exposures of rain-sculptured lacustral sediments, usually of a peculiar light-greenish tint, occur on the borders of Owyhee River near 

the mouth of Jordan Creek. Similar beds are present also in the 
U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

H 

,~s 

1----,..,.---____ s::,tr:o"- I 

e:,'t i 

i 

I 

I 

SKETCH MAP OF PORTIONS OF OREGON AND IDAHO 

SHOWING, APPROXIMATELY, ARTESIAN AREAS 

Scale 

10 20 30 iOmlles 

WATER-SUPPLY PAPERNO. 78 PL. II 

E 

LEGEND 

Areas where artesian water 

can probably be obtained ___________ _ 

Boundary of Great Basin, or area of interior drainage ______________ ••• _ 

Warm and hot ngs __ _________ __ _______ ' 
RUSSELL.] SEDIMENTARY ROCKS. 17 

mountains of Owyhee County, Idaho, and are an extension southward 

of t.he thick sediments exposed along Snake River. This same formation extends northward fr·om Snake River and is exposed near Boise, 

and in the valley of Payette River. From it.s abundant outcrops 

along the last-named stream, it has been termed the Payette 

formation by w aldemar J.,indgren. a 

While the Payette formation has a wide extent in Oregon, and possibly reaches to John Day River, where other similar beds outcrop, it 

is not positive that all the exposures of similar material as far south 

as Harney and Silver lakes were deposited in the same lake basin. 

The lacustral sediments beneath the basalt of Stein Mountain have a 

thickness of fully 1',000 feet, and, as now seems probable, are older 

than the Payette formation. 

Interbedded with the sandstone, shale, etc., of the formations just 

mentioned, and frequently forming a considerable and at times 

seemingly the major part of their thickness, are beds of exceedingly 

fine, white volcanic dust. This dust, was blown out of volcanoes 

during violent eruptions, and falling in lakes, or being washed into 

them by streams, became interbedded with other sediments or intimately commingled with them. Pure white, stratified volcanic dust, 

from 10 to 20 feet or more thick, maybe seen in the hills on the lower 

course of Owyhee River, a few miles south of Owyhee. It is also 

splendidly exposed near Beulah. Outcrops of material of the same 

nature, conspicuous on account of their whiteness, occur beneath the 

rim rock near Diamond, in the borders of the small valleys in the 

northern portion of Owyhee County, Idaho, as well as at a large 

number of localities in the bluffs bordering Snake River. 

An interesting fact in connection with the stratified beds briefly 

described above is that they contain the bones of animals which are 

now extinct, but which lived in large numbers in and about the ancient 

lakes in which the sand, clay, volcanic dust, and other material now 

exposed and eroded into hills and valleys was deposited. Throughout 

these same beds, but most abundantly in the thinly laminated white 

silts and beds of fine volcanic dust, occur fossil leaves, and less commonly the fruits of plants. These plant remains differ from the 

vegetation living on the earth to-day, and reveal the nature of the 

luxuriant forests that flourished in the now arid portions of the. far 

West during the ~rertiary period of geological history. The fossil 

bones and impressions of leaves and f-ruits referred to, and alstl the 

shells of fresh-water mollusks frequently associated with them, are 

of great scientific interest, as they furnish evidence in regard to 

past climatic changes and the gradual evolution of life on the earth, 

and enable geologists to determine the age of the beds in which th~y 

occur. 

a Eighteenth Ann. Rept. U.S. Geol, S1wvey, Pt~ W~ pp. 632--634; Twentieth Ann. Rept., Pt. 

lll, pp. 93-99; Geologic Folio No. 45 · . 

IRR 78-03--2 
18 ARTESIAN BASINS IN IDAHO AND OREGON. (NO. 78. 

The sedimentary beds to which attention has just been directed 

are in inany instances open-textured and of such a nature that water 

will readily percolate through them, while in other instances they are 

of the consistency of clay and tend to retain water in the porous beds, 

if any is present, between them. These conditions indicate that 

wherever the sedimentary beds have been bent or displaced from their 

original horizontal position so as to form basins, there is a probability 

that flowing water may be obtained by drilling wells. 

It is reasonable to assume that quartzite or granite is present beneath 

the Payette formation and associated volcanic rocks, throughout the 

Snake River Valley. The quartzite is usually a yellowish-white and 

excessively hard rock, and was orginally a sandstone, but has been 

altered or metamorphosed, so that the separate grains of quartz sand 

are no longer distinguishable. The granite is composed principally 

of conspicuous crystals of quartz, feldspar, and mica, as may be seen 

in the extensive outcrops in the mountains to the north of Boise, and 

is of deep-seated igneous origin. When either of these formations is 

encountered in drilling, the hope of obt,aining flowing water by continuing to a greater depth had best be a ban do ned. 

IGNEOUS ROCKS. 

VOLC'.ANIC ROCKS. 

The rocks which came from volcanoes are by far the ·most conspicuous of any of the formations in southwest Idaho and the adjacent part 

of Oregon, and are no doubt of greater extent and thickness than the 

associated sedimentary beds. They may, with sufficient accuracy, be 

classified as basalt and rhyolite, but a critical study will no doubt 

show that what is here termed rhyolite in reality includes several rock 

species. 

Bot.h the basalt and the rhyolite preRent two conspicuously different 

phases, due to the manner in which the material composing them was 

spread out on the earth's surface. These rocks while molten were in 

part extruded by volcanoes so as to form sheets, which in ·many 

instances flowed far and wide over the surface of the land before cooling. In other instances the lava, while yet in the craters from which 

it ca~e, cooled sufficiently to become rigid and was shattered by steam 

explosionR, and the fragments thus produced were blown into the air 

and widely distributed through the action of the wind, etc., as sheets 

of volcanic dust, volcanic gravel, or lapilli and angular fragments, 

frequently of considerable size. The basalt was spread over the surface of the land, mostly in a molten and even highly fluid condition, 

and the beds of fragmental material produced were relatively small. 

The rhyolite, to a great extent, was shattered at the time it was 

erupted, and the resulting beds of fragments were probably of greater 

extent and thickness than tl1e sb(}ets Qf th~ s~Ill(} material which were 
l~USSELL.] IGNEOUS ROCKS. 19 

spread out as lava flows. This difference in the behavior of the volcanoes from which the comparatively fusible basalt was erupted and 

of the volcanoes from which the more refractory rhyolite ·was discharged is of much significance in reference to the nature of volcanoes, 

but can not be discussed at this time. 

The basalt is a black, compact rock, but is frequently cellular and 

even scoriaeeous on aooonnt· of the presence in it of steam cavities, 

and in many localities is columnar. In the region under review it 

occurs in widely e:x;tended sheets, which in general vary in thickness 

from about 20 to 80 feet. Fine examples occur all along Snake River, 

but more especially on the northern side of its canyon, in the canyon 

of Bruneau River, and in the hills and mou-ntains of Malheur and 

Harney counties, Oreg. The finest exposure of basalt in the region 

visited by me in 1902, if not the most remarkable in the world, is- to 

be seen in Stein Mountain. The eastern slope of that splendid mountaill is composed of the broken and eroded edges of sheets of basalt, 

which dip westward at an angle of 3° to 4 o at the crest of the uplift, 

but flatten rapidly when traced westward, and present an aggregate 

thickness of not less than 5,000 feet. Between the sheets of basalt, 

as observed in at least eighteen instances, there are beds of coarse 

sandstone, varying in thickness from a few inches to 6 feet. Where 

the beds of sandstone occur the sheets of basalt are in general about 

60 feet thick. From this and other similar evidence the total number 

of lava flows which occur at the locality referred to is estimated at 

between 80 and 100. 

The widely extended sheets of basalt just referred to, like the sedimentary bttds with which they are intimately associated-the sheets 

of basalt and the beds of sandstone, shale, clay, etc., in many instances 

alternating one with the other-are of ancient date, and belong principally to the Tertiary division of geological history. · 

Volcanic eruptions have occurred, however, at intervals from the 

time the oldest sheets of basalt were poured out in a molten condition 

down to almost the present day. Recent volcanoes, which discharged 

great quantities of basa-ltic lava in the condition both of lava sheets 

and of angular fragments, occur at three localities in southeastern 

Oregon. One of these is situated a few miles west of Diamond, Harney County, where there are craters that are built in part of scoria, 

lapilli, etc., and in part of lava sheets, and are surrounded by extensive lava flows. This group of small volcanoes may with propriety 

be named t:P.e Diamond craters. A bout 6 miles northeast of the 

former Bowdens post-office, in Malheur County, and approximately 18 

miles south of Owyhe~ River where Jordan Creek joins it, there is an 

isolated crater of recent date, built almost entirely of congealed lava, 

which cooled about the opening in the earth from which it rose. 

About this Bowden crater, as· it may be termed, is a recent lava flow 

which came from it and spread over at least 150 square miles df coun-
20 ARTESIAN BASINS IN IDAHO AND OREGON. [NO. 78. 

try. The most instructive as well as the latest of the three recent 

eruptions. referred to occurs in the east-central part of Malheur 

County from 15 to 20 miles west of Jordan Valley, and the hills it 

built are here named the Jordan craters. The Cow Creek lakes owe 

their existence to the obstruction to the drainage caused by the ext,ensive sheet of fresh black lava which came from t,he most northerly 

and most recent of Jordan craters. The rocks extruded from these 

recent volcanoes were spread over the surface both as lava flows and 

as sheets and piles of fragments, and serve in a most instructive manner to illustrate the mode of origin of the more ancient and far more 

extensive accumulation of similar rock. 

The rhyolite, like the basalt, occurs both as massive sheets, which 

were poured out from volcanoes in a molten condition, and fragmental 

deposits, which also form well-defined beds. Of the beds originating 

in these two ways, the sheets of angular fragments, now in many 

instances firmly cemented and forming a rhyolitic tuff, are far more 

numerous and more extensive than the associated rhyolitic lava beds. 

The deposits of white volcanic dust described above as forming a part 

of the sedimentary formations are composed of the finest of .the fragments blown into the air by the volcanoes from which came the material now forming the sheets of rhyolite and of rhyolitic tuff. 

The compact, massive rhyolite is lighter colored than basalt, and 

in Idaho and Oregon is usually purplish on fresh surfaces, but weathers to a rich brown or red. It cont,ains conspicuous crystals and 

grains of quartz, feldspar, and other minerals, and hence usually 

appears spotted. Frequently tlie crystals and grains referred to 

exhibit an arrangement such as would be produced by a flowing 

m@tion in the glassy base in which they are embedded. 

The rhyolitic tuff is composed of angular fragments of the rock just 

described, which in most instances are firmly cemented so as to form 

sh~ets that are nearly, if not fully, as resistant to atmospheric eonditiqns as the similar material which cooled from fusion without being 

shp,ttered, as may frequently be seen in the rim rock on the sides of 

cabyons and valleys. 

Extensive exposures of rhyolite and of rhyolitic tuff occur in the 

mountains on the northeast side of Harney Valley, sometimes termed 

the Crow Creek Mountains. The conspicuous rim rocks on each side 

of Rattlesnake Creek, near Harney, are of rhyolitic tuff, while certain 

of the beds, usually cavernous on the weathered outcrops lower down 

in the walls of the same canyon, are of rhyolite which has a peculiar 

concentric or spherulitic structure. Again, in the bluffs of Silvies 

River, to the west of Burns, the edges of a thick sheet of compact tuff 

are well exposed, and similar rock has a wide distribution in the 

forest-covered mountains in which Silvies River rises. Other exposures of tuff and of compact rhyolite occur about Silver Lake, at Iron 

Mountain, and in the Mahogany Mountains. The conspicuous rim 
:RUSSELL.] IGNEOUS ROOKS. 21 

rocks in the vicinity of Diamo~d are composed of tuff, and similar 

rock has a wide distribution in t.he hills near Smith and Mule. 

An interest.ing fact in connection with the sheets of rhyolite and of 

rhyolitic tuff in southeastern Oregon is that they are younger than 

most of the basalt of the same region and overlie it. There have been 

eruptions of basalt, also, since the youngest observed sheet of rhyolite and of rhyolitric tuff was spread out. 

The rhyolitic tuff is in many instances highly porous and permits 

the free percolation of water through it, but in other instances it is 

firmly cemented and probably nearly impervious. The compact rhyolite is to be classed, in most instances, as au impervious rock, although 

its weathered outcrops are at times conspicuously ~ellular. The presence of ~heets of these rocks in an artesian basin, together witp. sheets 

of basalt and stratified sandstone, shales, clay, sand, etc., would tend 

to inorease the variety among the strata, and in a general way, at 

least, be favorable to the storage of water under press':lre. 

PLUTONIC OR DEEP-SEATED IGNEOUS ROCKS. 

,.rhe molten magmas which rise in volcanoes a;nd in part overflo"N, 

so as to form lava sheets, also, in part, eool below the surface in the 

conduits of volcanoes and in fissures. Many distinctive features in 

the rocks produced from the same molten magma arise in this way, 

which it is unnecessary to consider at this time. 

Both the basalt and the rhyolite, which occur in extensive sheets 

in Idaho and Oregon, came to the surface through openings, as fissures, for example, and below the present surface it is to be expected 

that there were many fissures in which molten rock has cooled, so as 

to form what are termed dikes. A few dikes were observed in the 

bold eastern face of Stein Mountain, and indicate that others may be 

present elsewhere. The dikes referred to are nearly vertical, vary in 

width 20 to 60 feet, and are horizontally columnar. As is well known, 

dikes have frequently led to the hardening of the walls of the fissures 

they occupy and for this and other reasons their presence in an art.esian basin might introduce serious difficulties in the way of obtaining 

flowing wells. If in drilling a well, the locality chose111 should chance 

to be directly above a dike, it is probable that the ~ell would be a 

failure, even if the usually compact and hard rock of the dike could 

be penetrated. Where the country rock is conceale beneath deep 

sheets of soil, alluvial deposits, etc., it is frequently impossible to 

detect the presence of dikes in the rocks beneath the surface cover~ 

ing, unless they are encountered in drilling or making other excavations. So far as ean now be judged, however, the dikes in the artesian 

basins described in this report are not numerous, and the chances of 

striking them in drilling are small. A greater danger lies in the fact 

that they may cut a pervious bed so as to prevent the percolation of 

water through it. 
22 ARTESIAN BASINS IN IDAHO AND OREGON. [NO. 78. 

GEOLOGICAL STRUCTURE. 

By geological structure is understood in part the positions occupied 

by stratified or bedded rocks in the earth's crust. For example, sandstone, shale, etc., originally laid down in horizontal sheets, are now 

found in many instances to be inclined or folded, and often occupy a 

vertical position. 

The rocks, both sedimentary and volcanic, which underlie southwestern Idaho and southeastern Oregon, were at the time of their 

formation spread out in nearly horizontal layers, but subsequently 

they have been depressed in one locality and raised in another, and 

in certain instances crushed together so as to form great upward and 

downward folds. In other localities they have been broken along 

nearly vertical planes, and a portion of the strata on one side of the 

break has been upraised or depressed in reference to corresponding 

strata on the opposite side; that is, the beds have been faulted. Examples of gentle tilting of previously horizontal sheets of rocks throughout great areas are furnished in the broad Snake River Plains between 

Glenns Ferry and .Owyhee. To the north of Snake River the rocks 

are now gently inclined upward to the north, but south of the river 

t.he same beds rise when followed southward-, and in the Owyhee 

Mountains the strata are more than a thousand feet above the position they occupy beneath Snake River. This upt.ilting of stratified 

beds is well displayed in the hills near the point where Snake River 

first crosses the Idaho-Oregon boundary. These remnants of formerly much more extensive strata indicate not only the way in which 

once horizontal beds have been tilted, but bear evidence as to the 

great amount of denudation that has occurred th1·oughont an extensive 

region. 

Broad and comparatively gentle elevations and depressions of once 

horizontally stratified rocks occur also in other portions ~f the region 

examined; as, for example, in the ne~ghhorhood of Harney and Burns. 

The rocks beneath the extensive valley in which Malheur and Harney 

. lakes are situate<.l slope upward in the hills and mountains about the 

borders of the basin, as is well shown in the walls of the canyons on 

the west side of Stein Mountain, in the Crow Creek Mountains, on the 

border of the canyon of Rattlesnake River, in the hills west of Burns, 

and several other localities. In general, all about the Harney basin, 

as it is convenient to term the great depression in which Malheur and 

Harney lakes are situated, as well as in the country draining to them, 

the rocks are upraised, This basin, however, is not a simple saucershaped depression, but has irregularities, and is due to the association 

of several areas in which upheavals or depressions have occurred. 

The broad, gentle undulations in the rocks just referred to, which 

in some instances have horizonital axes measuring a hundred or more 

miles, are promising structural features in reference to the hope of 

obtaining an artesian-water supply. 
RUSSELL.) GEOLOGICAL STRUCTURE. 23 

Of smaller size than the broad and usually somewhat indefinite 

swells and depressions referred to above are upward folds, or anticlines, 

and downward folds, or synclines. These are similar in shape and in 

the manner in which they are produced to the folds or corrugations 

that may be made by pushing one side of a pile of rugs toward its 

c~nter; or, on a still smaller scale, by forcing together the sides of a 

pile of newspapers so as to compress them into folds. In the region 

under consideration there are several examples of such folds; but, as 

is commonly the case on all land areas,. the relief produced in the 

manner referred to has been greatly modified by erosion. The upward 

folds particu~arly have been cut away, leaving for t.he most part only 

their basement portions. 

A striking illustration of a great upward bend, involving bedded 

lava sheets having an aggregate thickness of fully 5,000 feet and a 

great but unknown thickness of stratified sedimentary deposits as 

well, is furnished by the north portion of Stein Mountain and the 

several parallel nearly north-south ridges to the east of it and north 

of Alvord Desert. The larger features of this rugged helt of country 

are due to the erosion of a great anticlinal fold, the longer axis of 

which trends about northeast and southwest. The hard layer of compact basalt in the truncated remnant of the fold now forms the sharp 

crested ridges to the east of Juniper and Mann lakes, which have a 

gentle surfac.e slope on one side and a steep escarpment on the other. 

A characteristic example of a broad downward fold or syncline may 

be seen from the summit of Stein Mountain on looking toward the 

southwest over the region drained by Donner and Blitzen River. 

The longer axis of this basin trends in a north-south direetion and is 

inclined downward, or pitches, to the north. 

Accompanying the bending of rocks so as to form corrugations, 

breaks sometimes occur, and the edges of the broken layers on the 

sides of the fracture are upheaved or depressed wit,h reference to 

each other. In this and yet other ways what are termed "faults" are 

produced. 

When the rocks have been broken and displaced or faulted, the 

conditions are not favorable for obtaining artesian water. Even if 

an artesian basin is present, the impervious beds, which would otherwise confine water under pressure, may be broken and permit the 

water to escape. In this connection it is to be noticed that hot springs 

are frequently situated on fault lines. In the case of the Stein Mountain fault, a spring with several surface openings having temperatures ranging from 168° to 177° F. occurs on the southwest side of 

Alvord Desert. 

It is principally from the study of the structure of the rocks in any 

region that the presence of artesian basins is to be determined. ·The 

reason why structure may be considered as the controlling condition 

in this connection is because the other necessary conditions, such as 

the presence of pervious and impervious layers in a series of stratified 
24 ARTESIAN BASINS IN ID.AHO AND OREGON. [NO. 78. 

rocks, the presence of water in pervious beds, etc., are of common 

occurrence; while the req nisit,e conditions for storing water beneath 

the earth's surface and under pressure are much less frequent, and it 

is these conditions which are dependent principally on the positions 

which the rocks occupy-that is, the geological structure. When a 

saucer-shaped basin is present, the chances are that the other necessary conditions will also exist. 

ARTESIAN BASINS. 

The four principal areas in southwest Idaho and southeast Oregon 

in which artesian water has already been discovered, or in which convincing evidence is found that it may be obtained, have already been 

referred to under the names of the Lewis, Otis, Harney, and Whitehorse arteRian basins. Such facts as have been learned concerning 

each of these basins as are thought to be of immediate value to persons 

interested in the development of their artesian conditions are here 

presented. 

LEWIS ARTESIAN BASIN. 

The portion of this artesian basin in which flowing water may he 

obtained is situated along Snake River between Glenns Ferry and 

Weiser, and might with propriety have been named after it, except 

for the possibility that ot.her artesian basins may be discovered in 

the extensive I~egion it drains. Lewis, the less frequently used but 

more appropriate name of the Snake River, has therefore been selected 

as a convenient term by which to designate the artesian basin under 

consideration. 

The rocks on each side of Snake or Lewis River from near the 

mouth of Kinghill Creek westward to beyond the Idaho-Oregon 

boundary are gently inclined or dip toward the canyon of that 

stream from each side. The inclination of the rocks is most readily 

seen on the south side of Snake River; as, for example, in the highlands to the east of Bruneau River, and in the hills near the mouth 

of Owyhee River, where the strata rise when traced southward at the 

rate of perhaps 100 feet to the mile. This rise, although gentle, is 

sufficient t.o carry the strata which underlie Snake River to an elevation of more than a thousand feet above its surface in the hills and 

mountains of Owyhee County. On the north side of Snake River the 

rocks are seemingly level, but, as nearly as can be judged, rise gradually to meet the mountains of older rock to the north of Mountain 

Home, Boise, etc. The inclinations of the rocks just referred to show 

that they have been bent, into a broad trough-shaped depression, the 

longer axis of which bears about northwest and southeast, and is followed by the canyon of Snake River in a general way from Glenns 

Ferry to the Idaho-Oregon boundary. In certain localities, however, 

the axis of the fold is a mile or two north of the river. 
RUSSELL.] LEWIS ARTESIAN BASIN. 25 

On reaching Snake River, in 1901, I observed the general features 

pertaining to the dip of the rocks just referred tel>, and at once recognized the possibility of the presence of an artesiai1 basin. Other conditions confirming the truth of this inference, such as the presence of 

warm and hot springs, were soon discovered, and the fact was learned 

that several successful artesian wells had already been drilled in Bruneau and Little valleys, thus demonstrating that water under pressure 

exists below the surface. In 1902 the portion of Snake River Valley 

lying west of the region tt'aversed the previous year was examined, 

and the structural basin referred to was found to extend beyond the 

Idaho-Oregon boundary and to include a wide extent of territory in 

Oregon. 

The eastern end of the Lewis artesian basin is for convenience considered to be near the eastern boundaries of Elmore and Owyhee counties, principally for the reasons that this is the eastern limit in the 

canyon of Snake River where land suitable for irrigation occurs 

below the artesi~n head of the basin as at present known, and also 

because sufficient study has not as yet been given to the region east 

of the counties mentioned to justify me in expressing an opinion in 

1·eference to the actual eastern extension of the basin in question. 

rrhe margin of the Lewis art.esian basin can not yet be actually 

mapped, but within it is included, in a general way, the Snake River 

Plains in Elmore, Ada, and Canyon counties, and the country in 

Owyhee County which is drained by northward-flowing streams. In 

Oregon its boundary is still less definitely known, but it includes the 

greater part of the northern third of Malheur County. The position 

of the actual boundary of the basin, or the line from which the rocks 

begin to slope toward a central axis, is of much less practical moment, 

however, than the boundary of the country below the artesian head. 

As will be stated below, the artesian head of the Lewis artesian 

basin has not been accurately determined, but provisionally it is 

taken at 2,500 feet above sea level. This is certainly a safe assumption, 

as flowing wells now discharge this water at that level, and others, as 

determined by a less accurate method of measurement, namely, t.he 

aneroid barometer, overflow at 2,700 feet above the sea. This indefiniteness is due to the fact that none of the wells in the basin are 

properly cased, and it was impracticable with the means at my disposal to make definite measurement of the water pressure. However, the area throughout the greater part of the Snake River Canyon 

or Valley, which is between au elevation of 2,500 and 2,700 feet, is 

comparatively small, and the extent of territory below the former 

level is probably more-than sufficient to utilize all the artesian water 

that can be had within its boundary. 

The tracing of the territory below the known artesian head in the 

portion of the I~ewis artesian basin which is situated in Idaho is a 

simple matter, as most of it has been surveyed and accurate contour 
26 ARTESIAN BASINS IN IDAHO AND OREGON. (NO. 78. 

maps are available. The maps referred to are published by the United 

States Geological Survey, and comprise the following sheets of the 

topographic atlas of the United States: Mountain Home, Bisuka, Boise, 

Silver City, Nampa, and Weiser.a By consulting these maps it will 

be seen that a ]arge extent of territory adjacent to Snake and Boise 

rivers lies· below the 2,500-foot contour. Practically all of the flat 

land favorable for agriculture adjacent to Snake River, between 

Glenns Ferry and the mouth of Boise River, lies below the horizon 

referred to. That is, the 2,500-foot contbur marks, in general, the 

beginning of the abrupt slopes which rise from the flat lands bordering the river to the margin of the plateau above. In the region referred 

to, where the surface is less than 2,500 feet above the sea, wells put 

down to tlie requisite depth, which will be discussed later, should 

yield flowing water. A considerable extent of country about Nampa 

and Caldwell, much of the valley of Boise River, and of the Snake 

River Valley between the mouths of the Boise and Weiser, are also 

below the 2,500-foot contour, and so far as can now be judged, wells 

put down in this region should also yield an artesian flow. 

There are no good maps of the region in Oregon embraced within 

the Lewis artesian basin, and it is impracticable to state at present 

where the plane of the assumed artesian head, 2,500 feet above the 

sea, intersects the surface. Much of the nearly level land that is 

otherwise favorable for agricuU.ure adjacent to the west side of Snake 

River from where it first crosses the Idaho-Oregon boundary northward to the vicinity of Weiser, and an extensive tract in the lower 25 

miles of the valley of Malhe_ur River are certainly within the limit 

referred to, and careful tests of the artesian conditions should be 

made. A rough estimate of the extent of agricultural land in Idaho 

and Oregon that is within the Lewis artesian basin and below its 

known artesian head shows it to be not less than 1,000 square miles. 

As the conclusions just presented will no doubt be considered too 

sanguine by many persons, I desire to indicate briefly the evidence, 

other t,han the geological structure, on which t,hey are based, and at 

the same time to furnish data which will assist in the more complete 

development of the artesian conditions. 

SPRINGS. 

Within the Lewis artesian basin there are a number of warm and 

hot springs, which show that water under pressure exists below the 

surface. 

Moumtain Hmne.-About 3 miles east of Rattlesnake Creek, at the 

loca.lity where "Old" Mountain Home was located, there is a fine 

spring, or group of springs, with a maximum temperature of 167° F. 

a These maps, on a scale of about 2 miles to 1 inch, with a contour interval of 100 feet, each 

sheet including about 850 square miles, can be purchased of. the United States Geological Survey for 5 cents each. 
RUSSELL.] LEWIS ARTESIAN BASIN. 27 

The surface level is about 3,550 feet. The water is of good quality, 

but is not .now utilized except in a small way for bathing. No attempt 

has been made to develop the spring by boring, although good land 

occurs near at hand on which any water that might be obtained could 

be used for irrigating. 

Boise.--Springs issue from sandstone of the Payette formation, 4t 

miles east of Boise, at an elevation of about 2, 750 feet. The water 

has a faint smell of sulphureted hydrogen, contains a small amount 

of mineral matter in solution, and varies in temperature from 125° F. 

to near the boiling point. 

Salmon. R·ive1·. -A small spring on the left bank of Snake River, 

about 4 miles above the mouth of Salmon River, Cassia County, has 

a temperature of 131 oF. Another hot spring occurs in the canyon of 

Salmon River, 3.bout 5 miles above its mouth. 

Little Valley.-Near the head of Little Valley, Owyhee County, 

there are several warm springs and one small hot spring, temperature 

101 oF., which is now partially developed by drilling wells near it to 

a depth of 40 .feet. 

Br·uneatt T(alley.---.:...Near Hot Spring post-office there are ·several 

copious springs, with a temperature of 109° F. One of ·these has been 

developed by drilling a well near it to a depth of 240 feet. The well 

furnishes 7 gallons of water per minute. a 

Walters Butte.-A copious spring about 1 mile west of Walters· 

Butte, Canyon County, where the elevation is 2,340 feet, has a temperature of 67° F. This spring is very likely due to the leakage from 

water-bearing strata, and suggests that wells put down in its vicinity 

to a depth of about 350 or 400 feet would yield a surfnce flow of water. 

Near Walters Butte there is an area of about 4 square miles of favorable land that lies below the known artesian head of the basin in 

which it is situated. 

Enterprise.-On t.he south side of Snake River, at Enterprise, 

Owyhee County, there is a spring issuing at an elevation of 2,220 feet, 

with a temperature of 128° F., which discharges approximately 7 cubic 

feet of water per second and is now utilized for bathing and for irrigating about 10 acres of land. The water rises where there is a thickness of nearly 1,000 feet of soft lake sediment (Payette formation) 

and, as its temperature indicates, comes from a depth of approximately 4,500 feet. · 

Sands.-From 2 to 3 miles west of Sands, in Owyhee County, and 

_near the point where Poison Creek descends through a deep cleft in the 

upland and enters Snake River Valley, there are copious springs, with 

a temperature of about 100° F., which are used for irrigation. These 

springs rise whm·e the surface level is approximately 2,450 feet, and 

may reasonably be supposed to be supplied by the leakage of porous 

aConcsrning the five localities mentioned above additional information is presented in Bull. 

U.S. Geol. SurveyNo.l99. 
28 ARTESlAN BASlNS tN iDAHO AND OREGON. [NO. 78. 

beds in the Payette formation. They occur within the Lewis artesian 

basin, nearly up to the known artesian head of that basin. and are a 

favorable indication that wells drilled in their vicinity to a depth of 

appt·oximately 1,000 feet would prove successful, but from other evidence it is to be presumed that flowing water might be expected on 

drilling to a less depth. To the north of the conspicuous line of 

bluffs trending northwest and southeast and passing Sands on the 

south is a large tract of good land, embracing in fact something like 

100 square miles, which is below t.he level of the springs just referred 

to, and where one is justified in assuming that artesian water can 

be had. 

Owyhee Canyon.-In the canyon of the Owyhee, about 6 miles 

south of Owyhee post-office, there is a copious hot spring, which issues 

from openings in volcanic rock and has a temperature of about 115° 

F. But little irrigable land occurs near this spring, and for this reason an attempt to develop it and concentrate its flow would at present 

not be warranted. 

Vale.-At Vale, on the east border of Malheur River, there is a 

spring_ with a temperature of 198-:!° F. Near at hand a well put down 

to a depth of 140 feet yields a strong flow of water with the same temperature. These springs are in a broad region underlain by the 

Payette formation, but it is presumed, are supplied by fissures. 

These springs rise at the west base of ~ prominent hill, composed 

in part of cemented gravel, and the manner in which they are 

depositing mineral matter suggests that the pebbles and sa~d in the 

hill were.ceme-nted by the same process. Other similar hills or buttes 

are situated a mile or two northward, and another is a conspicuous 

object about 5 miles farther north. Each of these exceptional features in the topography of the valley is due to the resistance offered 

to erosion by the hard beds they contain, and suggest that in each 

case hot springs rising through the Payette formation have led to a 

local hardening of its more porous strata and, in consequence, their 

preservation as erosion progressed. This suggestion was not tested 

by examining each of the hills referred to, but may be of interest to 

st.udents of geology who visit them in the future, and in addition 

may be found to explain the manner in which hot springs sometimes occur in artesian basins, but do not appear to have any connection with· neighboring art,esian wells. 

Wesifall.-On the stage road between Vale and Westfall, in sec. 9, 

T. 18 S., R. 43 E., there is a spring with a temperature of 168° F. at 

an elevation by aneroid barometer of 2,400 feet. This discharges by 

estimate about 2 miners' (California) inches, or 100 cubic inches per 

second, but the total flow from the several small openings is probably 

greater than this. The waters have a slight odor of sulphuretedhydrogen, and are depositing lime in the form of cellular calcareous tufa. 

The water is used for bathing, and in part is conducted to a house 
RUSSELL.] LEWIS .ARTESIAN BASIN. 29 

through a pipe and used for cooking, etc. A small spring near at 

hand, supplied by percolation from the alluvial material in the bed 

of Bully Creek, has a temperature of 54 o F. 

The hot spring just mentioned is within the territory included in 

the Lewis artesian basin, and, judging from the approximat,e measures' 

available, is below the artesian head of that basin, but owing to tlie-- , 

high t~rature of its waters and the consequent depth from which 

they ri~e.nd t,he nature of the rocks in the vicinity, little if any sig-"'' 

nificance·in reference to the probability of obtaining artesian water' ·~ 

in its ~0ighborhood can be attached to it. 

Beulah;-Small springs in the valley of Warm Creek, near Beulah, 

have a temperature of 185° F. 

DRILLED WELLS. 

In the portion of the Lewis artesian basin examined by me in 1901 

it was found that several moderately deep borings had already been 

put down, several of which yielded a surface flow of water. Some 

account of the borings referred to was presented in my report for the 

year named, a but for the purpose of bringing together all the available evidence furnished by borings concerning ~ater pressure, etc., 

within the Lewis artesian basin a brief account of those previously 

described is here inserted. 

Bo-ise..-To the north and east of Boise and within 2 miles of the 

city several flowing wells have been obtained by drilling in the Payette formation, and the water they supply is now utilized for city purposes. Boise is fortunate in possessing both cold and hot. artesian 

weUs. The following facts · eoncerning them are compiled from a 

report on the geology of the Boise region of Waldemar Lindgren. 0 

The several cold artesian wells at Boise (temperature about 55° F.) 

are situated in the gulch~s north of the cit,y and at au elevation of 

about 2, 750 feet. They vary in depth from 400 to 609 feet, but since 

this information was obtained some of them have been deepened. 

The materials passed through in Hulls Gulch ~re sand and sandstone, 

200 feet, and clayey beds, 200 feet, below which water was obtained. 

In the deepest. well there are below the clay 40 feet of sand, 20 feet 

of clay, and 46 feet of solid basalt, below which clay occurs again. 

These wells yield from 40 to 250 gallons per minute, and their combined flow is stated to be about 670 gallons per minute. The water 

is stored in a covered reservoir and from there conducted into the 

city water mains. 

Two wells d1;illed on the Davis ranch, in the next gulch north of 

Hulls Gulch, to a depth of 150 feet yield 40 gallons of water per 

aBull. U.S. Geol. Survey No. 199. 

bGeologic Atlas U. S., folio 45, Boise, Idaho; published by the U.s. Geol. Survey and sold 

for 25 cents per copy. 
80 ARTESIAN BASINS IN IDAHO AND OREGON.- (NO. 78. 

minute. A well drilled to a depth of 400 feet in a ravine south of 

Hulls Gulch passed through clay and failed to reach water under 

pressure. 

The hot artesian wells at Boise are situated two miles southeast of 

the city. Three of these, the water of which is piped to the city and 

extensively used for heating, baths, etc., have depths of 394, 404, and 

455 feet. The character of the rocks penetrated is not definitely 

recorded, but it is stated that the drill, after passing through sandstone, peneti·ated several sheets of basalt, below which occurred red 

volcanic tuff or fragmental volcanic rock more or less thoroughly 

cemented and containing much black sand. The combined discharge 

of the three wells is 550 gallons a minute. The water is slightly 

charged with mineral matter in solution (about 300 parts in 1,000,000) 

and has a temperature of 170° F. The surface elevation is nearly 

2,800 feet, and the water is under sufficient pressure to cause it to rise 

in a tube open at the top about 50 feet above the surface, or to an elevation of 2,850 feet above the sea. Several wells have been drilled on 

the United States military reservation a mileeast of Boise, at least 

two of which discharge warm water. Their depths are 450 and 482 

feet. The surface elevation is 2,850 feet. From the first mentioned 

a small flow of water with a temperature of from 75° to 140° F., 

increasing with depth, was obtained. The second gave -a flow of about 

35 gallons per ·minute, the water having a temperature of 90° F. 

These wells are located near a small tepid spring, and penetrated first 

130 to-160 feet of sandstone, then 72 to 116 feet of hard, black lava 

(basalt), below which occurs a series 200 to 250 feet thick of clays and 

red basalt-ic tuff l)ich in magnet.ite (black sand) and sometimes containing also iron pyrites. 

Other artesian wells in the neighborhood of Boise are briefly 

described in the Boise folio referred to above. 

Both the cold and the hot artesian wells near Boise are in the 

:payette formation and associated and interbedded sheets of basalt 

which underlie the Snake River Plains. These same beds outcrop 

on the border of Snake River Canyon, and south of Snake River 

rise to an elevation of 4,000 feet or more in the Owyhee Mountains. 

These facts, together with the· geographical position of the wells and 

the elevation at which they are located-that is, about 2,850 feetrender it at least possible that t.hey belong to the Lewis artesian 

basin. 

Br,wneau Valley.-ln the upper portion of Bruneau Valley there 

are three flowing wells, each 2-! inches in diameter, which, together 

with the numerous hot springs of the same region briefly described 

above, sho~ that an abundance of water exists at a moderate depth 

and unde;r sufficient pressm;e to cause it to rise to the surface if openings are provided. 

On W. N. Roberson's ranch, about 2 miles north of Hot Spring 
RUSSELL.] LEWIS ARTESIAN BASIN. 31 

post-office and on the west side of the valley,-a drilled well having a 

depth of 240 feet delivers about 7 gallons of water per minute, having 

a temperature of 109° F. This well is within a few feet of a large hot 

spring having the sallle temperature, the flow of which was not 

diminished when the well was drilled. The elevation of the surface 

at this point, by aneroid, is 2,750 feet. The section passed through, 

as reported from memory by Mr. Roberson, is as follows: 

Section at Roberson's ranch. 

Feet. Inches. 

Light-colored sandy clay (Payette formation) _______ , _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 236 

Granular black layer, like basalt (volcanic lapilii) _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 10 

Blue clay (Payette formation) _________________ . ______________ . _ _ _ 4 

Black lava _ . ________________________________________ . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Several inches. 

Total depth, approxiina tely ________________________ . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 240 

The water is used for household purposes and for irrigation. 

Nearly opposite the well just described, on the east side of the 

valley and at an elevation approximately 50 feet higher, a well drilled 

to a depth of 230 feet, on land belonging to Mr. A. H. Pence, gave a 

small surface flow. 

On B. Whitson's ranch, on the eastern side of the valley, about 3 

miles north of the two wells just mentioned, where the surface elevation is by aneroid 2, 7 50 feet, a well 700 feet deep discharges about 

one-third cubic foot of water per second. The temperature is reported 

to be 90° F. 

These three wells derive their·water from different depths, and 

seem to indicate that water under pressure exists in at least three 

disconnected pervious layers, or else that a source of supply more 

deeply seated than has been reached by any of the drill holes yet 

made charges porous beds above it through fissures. rrhe abundance 

of hot springs in the same vicinity apparently favors the latter 

hypothesis. 

Little VaUey.-Near the head of Little Valley, 9 miles west of Bruneau, there are five flowing wells, which range in depth from 150 to 

215 feet, each drilled with a 2!-inch bit and poorly cased. The water 

is of good quality and has a temperature of about 67° F. The flow 

varies somewhat with seasonal changes, being greatest in winter and 

spring and least in summer and fall. In most of these wells the pipes 

have become clogged and the discharge is small. One of the stronger 

of the wells delivers in August a gallon of water in seven minutes, ·and 

is said to discharge about a gallon per minute in winter. Neighboring springs have various temperatures, ranging from 56° to 59° F. 

These shallow wells, some of which began to flow when a depth ()f 

60 to 70 feet- was reached, are in a broad, deeply filled alluvial valley 

and evidently depend for their water supply on an alternation of pervious and impm·vious beds in the alluvial deposits. The source of 

the water for the several cold springs is no doubt the creeks which 
32 ARTESIAN BASINS IN IDAHO AND OREGON. (NO. '18. 

flow from the mountains to the south, but the wells must be supplied 

from a deeper source. 

Little Valley is situated within the Lewis artesian basin and is lower 

than the flowing wells near Hot Spring post-office, in Bruneau Valley, 

but the wells referred to above do not furnish a test of what· may be 

termed the true artesian condition. Near the wells just described, 

hut nearer the head of Little Valley, there is a small hot spring which 

rises thrnugh soft, white iake beds, and which has a temperature of 

IOI o F. Five drill holes, put down to a depth of 40 feet in the immediate vicinity of this spring, resulted in a marked increase in the 

outflow. The discharge is now about one-half cubic foot per second. 

The wells are not cased, and there is reason to believe that larger 

holes, with proper casing, would lead to a greater discharge. 

G1.t.ffey.-In the small valley cut by Dry Creek, about 1~ miles 

southwest of Guffey, Owyhee County, a well drilled to a depth of 568 

feet, but not completed when examined (July I2, I902), passes 

through 30 feet of loose surface gravel and then about 538 feet of 

soft light-covered strata belonging to the Payette formation, containing t,hree seams of hard material, and 1eached a hard rock, perhaps 

quartzite, which checked the drill. The well is 3 inches in diameter: 

A surface flow was obtained from a depth of I60 feet, and an additional flow at 4I6 feet. The discharge is nearly I cubic foot of 

water per minute; temperature 76-~° F. The well is not cased below 

a depth of 38 feet. Elevation at surface 2,375 feet, or about I60 

feet above the adjacent portion of Snake River. 

In a small gulch at Guffey and about I20 feet, above Snake River, 

a well bored with a It-in · 1 hand auger to a depth of 30 feet through 

light-colored beds, probably shale of the Payette formation, at first 

discharged about I gallon of water per minute, but has since ceased 

to flow. 

Cenb·al.-Near Central (Barnard Ferry), in the Snake River Canyon, and from 7 to 9 miles northwest of Guffey, four art.esian wells 

have been drilled. All of them are situated near the bottom of the 

valley, and within a distance of It miles of Central, t0ward the southeast, where the elevation is approximately 2,300 feet. The records 

of these wells are as follows: 

On the land of Alfred Cox a 3-inch well completed in June, I902, 

has a depth of about 1,033 feet. It is cased from surface to a depth 

of 39 feet and discharges by estimate one-half gallon of water per 

second; temperature 100° F. Flowing water was first reached at a 

dept,h of 600 feet, and the delivery at the surface steadily increased as 

long as drilling was continued. The water brings sand and- gravel to 

the surface with it. The contract price of the well was 25 cents per 

foot, the owner furnishing wood and water for the engine used in 

drilling. The casi~g used was also provided by the owner of the land 

and cost about 50 cents per foot. · 
RUSSELL.] LEWIS ARTESIAN BASIN. 33 

About one-half mile west of the Cox well a boring approximately 

1,000 deep was put down in 1901, which failed to reach water under· 

sufficient pressure to force it to the surface. No ot,her record in 

1·eference to this boring has been obtained. 

On the farm of P. B. Smith, adjacent to the land of }fr. Cox, and 

about 1i miles southeast of Central, an artesian well drilled in 1901 

has a depth of 9-!0 feet, is 3 inches in diameter, is cased to a depth 

of 30 feet,, and discharges about one-third of a gallon of water persecond; temperature 98° F. Water which rose to the surface was 

first reached at a depth of 550 feet. At 700 feet a seam of black 

sand, et,c., was penetrated and the flow of water increased. At the 

bottom of the well the drill dropped about 3 feet, having reached a. 

strat,um of sand and gravel, from which the main supply of water is 

derived. The well discharges sand and gravel. Cost about 25 cents. 

per foot. 

On the land of Mr. Barnard~ about one-half mile southeast of Cen-· 

tral, a well drilled in 1901 has a depth of about 1,035 feet, is 3 inches. 

in diameter, cased for a short distance at the top, and discharges, by 

estimate, 1 gallon of water per second, with a temperature of 106° F .. 

At, Mr. Barnard's home, in Central, a well drilled in 1901 to a depth 

of 720 feet, delivers about three-fourths of a gallon of water per sec .... 

ond, not measured, with a temperature of 99 or 100° F. 

The four wells near Central just referred to were all drilled in the, 

unconsolidated lacustral deposits, mostly sandy clays and soft shales. 

of the Payette formation. A not,able fact in connection with them is 

that no sheets of basalt were encountered. The water from each of 

the wells is used for irrigation. 

EntetJ.Yrise.-About 3i r-.iles down Snake River from Central orBarnard Ferry is the post-office known as Enterprise, situated near· 

Warm Spring Ferry. Within a radius of about 1i miles of Enter~ 

prise and to M1e southeast there are 4: artesian wells. 

At the home of George Newell there are g flowing wells, one with a 

depth of 3-W feet, cased with 2f-inch pipe, temperature of 87° F., and 

t,he other 3t15 feet deep, 6 inehes in diameter; temperature H0° F. 

The surface elevation is about 2,300 feet. The flow of water front 

the larger well, particularly, is strong, but on account of leakageabout the pipe eould not, be measured. An estimate places the combined flow from the t,wo wells at about 1 gallon per second. Thewater is used for irrigation. About lt miles sout,hwest of Mr. Newell's 

home, where the elevat,ion is 2,.500 feet, a well drilled in 1901 to a 

depth of 165 feet, diameter 10 inchPs, discharges, by estimate, about 

2 gallons of water per second; temperature 87° F. The water is used 

for irrigation. 'rhis well was begun in igneous rock, probably rhyolite, but at a depth of a few feet entered elay, and below the clay 

several changes in the nature of the material occurred, but an aecurate 1·ecord has not been preset·ved. Near where the well was drilled 

IRR 78-03--:J 
34 ARTESIAN BASINS IN IDAHO AND OREGON. [NO. 7'8. 

there 1s a small spring of warm water. Approximately one-half mile 

west of Mr. Newell's raneh, on land reported to belong to Mr. Shirley, 

a well was drilled in 18fll to a depth of about, 580 feet. 

The four wells just referred to, with t,he exeeption of the 10-ineh 

well, were drilled in the light-eolored sedimentary beds of the Payette formation awl, like those near Central, have surp1;isingly high 

tempm·atures for t~heir depth. They are within a distance of It 

miles of the copious hot spring at Enterprise, which has a temperature of 1:18° F., and, as it seems justifiable to assume, derive a part of 

their water at least from that or some other similar source. 

Ontan·o.-The records of two drill holes made at Ontario, Oreg., 

are as follo-ws: 

A well owned by t,he city of Ontario, incomplete in October, 1H0:1, 

has, as I am informed by 1\:Ir. A. L. Sproul, of Ontario, a depth of 

1,025 feet, is 4 inches in diameter, and reached water at lfl5 feet,, 

which rose to within 6 feet of the surface. The material passed 

through is sand and gravel to a depth of 35 feet and the remainder 

blue clay. The wat,er is eharged with gas, whieh, when properly 

confined, burns constantly. Cost of the well, $750. 

The well just described is situated where the surface elevation is 

between 2,100 and 2,200 feet, or well below the artesian head of the 

Lewis artesian basin. The well is not cased, and the rise of the ·water 

to within f3 feet of the surface makes it, probable that if proper tests 

of the water pressure should be made it would be found that a surface flow could be had by putting in proper casing. 

The second well at Ontario, owned by A. F,. Boyer, completed September, 1002, 3 inches in diameter, has a depth of 215 feet; water 

rose and overflowed. Gas is discharged with the water. Material 

passed through: Soil, 10 feet; gravel, 20 feet, and the balance shale. 

Cost, $100. 

T'"ale.-A flowing well at Vale, Oreg., drilled near a hot spring to 

a depth of 140 feet, as already stated, discharges a strong flow of 

water so long as the casing is not obstructed by mineral mat,ter 

deposited from it, and has a temperature of 1HSto F. This well may 

be considered as a developed hot spring and has but little significance 

in reference to the artesian water supply of the basin in which it is 

located. 

Bwrnmary.-The artesian wells near Guffey, Central, and Enterprise eollectively present certain interesting facts. They are located 

essentially on a line extending northwest and southeast and measuring about 11t miles. At t,he west end of the line is the hot spring at 

Enterprise. The depth of the wells and their temperatures are as 

follows, beginning at Guffey and approaching Enterprise: 
RUSSELL.] LEWIS A RTESI.A.N BASIN. 35 

Depth and temperatu-re of 1t•ells at Guffey, Central, and Enterprise. 

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

Distance i I ' 

Locality. 

from En-~ T Temperahot 1 d1ent. terprise Depth.l e~~:~- tm:e gra-

------------------l-'"-~-:-,~-. ~ ~--L--}'Y""F --- Guffey ________ . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 11ii 538 I 76~ 18. 42 

Central _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 5 i 1 , 033 1 1 00 19. 66 

Do ____ 4t( 9.to I 98 t8. 54 ~ _________________________________ _ 

Do ~ _____________________________________ _ 3! 1 1, 035 106 17.57 I 

3* 1-i 

1 I 

Do ______ -~·-· ______________________ -----~ 720 

87 7.83 

100 13.40 

En tel'!) rise ___________________________ . ______ ~ 340 

Do _____ . ____ . ___________________________ . 385 90 8.37 

Do _ ~ ~ __ ~ ~ _ ~ _______ ~ ___ . __ . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ u! 1651 

Enterp1·ise hot spring ________________________________ ~ :,, _______ _ 

• I 

87 3.10 

128 

The temperature gr-adient, it will be remembered, is obtained by 

dividing the depth of a well below t,Iw strat,um of no seasonal variation in tempernture, assumed as 50 feet, by the nu'mber of degrees 

the temperature of the water <lischarged exceeds the temperature of 

the stratum of no seasonal variation, assumed to he 50° F. The temperature gradient, t,hen, shows the depth in feet for each increa!'le of 

1 degree in temperature. 

As is indicated in the above table, the temperature gradient in the 

region considered increases in a conspicuous manner as the distance 

from the Enterprise hot spring decreases. An exceptional increase, 

·however, ls seen in the case of the last, well mentioned in the table, 

which, as noted above, is near a small tepid spring, and no doubt for 

this reason shows a more rapid increase of temperature with depth than 

any of the others. Not considering the well just referred to, the 

temperature gradient increa~es as the Enterprise hot spring is 

approached, but the rate of increase can not be accurately determined 

from the data available, since the wells are not cased and are not 

supplied from the same stratum. 

The facts just presented seem to indicate that the porous beds in 

the Payette formation in the vicinity of Enterprise are supplied in 

part at least from the hot spring at that plaee. A legitimate conclusion seems to be that the rocks beneath the Payette formation are 

fissured and that hot water rising through the fissure has charged the 

porous beds above. 'Vhether t,here is a deep artesian basin beneath 

t.he Payette formation or not there are no data for judging. In general, however, hot springs rise through deep fissures and are probably 

in most cases not an indic>ation of the presence of a true artesian 

basin. As has already been stated, the Lewis artesian basin was 

formed by a bending of the rocks after M1e Payette beds were laid 
36 ARTESIA:N BASINS IN IDAHO AND OREGON. [NO. 78. 

down, and this bending no doubt affected a great thickness of the 

earth's crust below the beds now forming the surface. For this reason 

it is possible that a true artesian basin exists, the porous beds of which 

are depressed in the vicinity of 8I1ake River to a depth of ±,000 or 

5,000 feet. 

In addition to the supply of water reaching the Payette beds from 

below, the shape of the basin and the fact that the beds composing 

it outcrop in the hills and mountains bordering the Snake River 

Plains on the north and south make it evident that additional water 

may reach the eentral part of the basin by descending from the 

surfaee. 

The most logical eonclusion to be drawn from all the evidence presented in reference to the probability of obtaining water in the Lewis 

artesian basin seems to be that flowing water may be expeeted when 

a well is so drilled as to penetrate deeply or pass through the Payet,te 

formation at any loc.ality within its borders where the surface elevation is less than 2,500 feet. As already st,at,ecl, 2,500 feet is the minimum measure of the art,esian head, as shown by existing wells, hut 

the true artesian head may considerably exeeed this amount. 

The wells in Bruneau Valley, as shown by an unsatisfactory method, 

namely, aneroid barometer measurements, have an altitude of 2, 700 

feet; and the artesian head at Boise is about 2,850 feet. It is not safe 

at present, however, to aceept any measurement of the artesian head 

in excess of 2,500 feet, and until more wells are drilled all attempts to 

obtain flowing water should be confined to localities below that horizon. It chances that nearly all the good land along Snake River and 

in the lower portions of ~Ialheur Valley and much of that in Boise 

Valley are below 2,500 feet. Abundant localities for developing the 

Lewis artesian basin are thus available and should be tested before 

attempts are made to obtain artesian wells on the uplands. 

The wells drilled in Snake River Valley at Central, Enterprise, 

Ontario, and other places passed through soft strata and did not show 

the presenee of beds of basalt. or other hard rock in the Payette formation. It is probable that _only soft beds will be encountered in 

drilling to a d~pth of about 1,000 or 1,200 feet in the port,ion of Snake 

River Valley between Guffey and Weiser, but no posHive assurance 

that such. will be found to be the case can at present be given. 

Afl may be judged from the facts above presented in reference to 

the occurrence of hot springs near the artesian well now flowing, the 

most favorable localities for drilling additional wells may be assumed 

to be near where warm or hot springs rise through the Payette formation. A qualification of this st,atement is suggested, however, by the 

fact that the hot spring at Vale is depositing mineral mat,ter in the 

beds it passes through in rising toward the surface, and presumably 

in this way forms for itself a conduit which prevents its water from 

spreading laterally. This exceptional condition is also indicated by 
RUSSELL.] _ OTIS .ARTESIAN BASIN. 37 

the exceptionally high temperature of the spring referred to. In 

choosing a location for a well, therefore, it would be best, at least 

until more facts are gathered in this connection, to ayoid the proximity 

of a hot spring that is depositing calcareous silica, tufa, gypsum, 

etc. The most favorable locality, so far as I can now judge, for continuing the development of the Lewis artesian basin is in the extensive flat in the Snake River Valley to the north of Sands. 

EASTWARD EXTENSION. 

On a prececling page it was stated that the Lewis artesian basin 

begins on the east near the mouth of Kinghill Creek, that limit be .. ..J.g 

chosen mainly for th8 r-:-ason that, but little land suitable for irrigation exists in the canyon of Snake River above the locality mentioned. 

The upraised rim of the basin extends farther east, however, but 

what its limits are is as yet unknown. 

In my report on the geology and water resources of the Snake River 

Plains a some facts concerning artel'liau wells in and about the Rock 

Creek Hills were presented. It, now seems not improbable that these 

wells are in reality situated in the I..~ewis artesian ba~?in, and it may 

-perhaps be shown by future investigations that the wonderful springs 

in 8nake River Canyon, l)etween Bliss on the west and the neighborhood of the mouth of Salmon River on the east, may be due to the escape 

of artesian water from the same basin. While there are no newly 

acquired fact,s to report concerning the region just referred to, lying 

south of Shoshone Falls, the study of the Lewis artesian basin certainly indicates that the probability of success in case wells are drilled 

there is great,er than seemed evjdent when the report on the explorations was made by me in ] 901. 

OTIS ARTESIAN BASIN. 

Otis Valley is situated on a creek of the same name in the ext1·eme 

northeast portion of Harney County, Oreg., about 6 miles northeast 

of Drewsey. The valley has a flat. bottom, measuring by estimate 5 

by G miles jn diameter, and contains a considerable amount of good 

land. About 1,900 acres are now under irrigation. The valley is 

underlain by sedimentary beds consisting largely. of white volcanic 

dust, presumably belonging to the PayeUeformation. The bordering 

uplands are composed in part and perhaps principally of basalt, but 

the sedimentary beds and layers of \·olcanic dust which o0cur beneath 

the valley have also been bent upward in its elevated rim. The dip 

of the beds about the east side of the valley is west or towat·d its center at a low angle, and on the sout,h sille, as is revealed in the hills 

at Drewsey, the dip is northward. lVIy examination was not so complete as I desired, but I think was sufficient to show that the valley is 

a structural basin, on the west side of which there is perhaps a break 

a Bull. U. S. Geol. Survey No. 199, l9H2. 
38 ARTESIAN BASINS IN IDAHO AND OREGON. [NO. 78. 

or fauU. The structure is such as to suggest the presence of an artesian basin, and in addit,ion copious warm springs on its eastern side 

show that water under pressure exists below the surface. To term 

the region in which Otis Valley is located an artesian basin, however, 

will be justified only when the presence of water under sufficient 

pressure to force it to the surface is demonstrated, but the conditions 

observed seem to warrant a careful test by drilling. The pioneer well 

should be put down on the east side of the valley, a short distance to 

the west of the warm springs referred to. The area of the land below 

the level of the artesian head suggested by the elevation at which the 

warm springs come to t,he surface is about 10 or 15 square miles. 

HARNEY ARTESIAN BASIN. 

The region embraced within what is here t,ermed t,he Harney artesian basin is so great that, I could not in the time available examine 

it with the care it deserves, but I crossed it and visited various commanding summits so as to see more or less thoroughly its entire extent. 

The area embraced in the outer rim of the basin includes in a general 

way the region drained by streams which during the rainy season flow 

to l\1alheur and Harney lakes, and includes perhaps two-thirds of 

Harney County, Oreg. The principal streams referred to are Silvies 

River, which flows southward past, Burns and enters Malheur Lake 

from the north, and Donner and Blitzen River, which rises on Stein 

Mountain, flows northward, and also enters l\Ialheur Lake. The distance between the sources of these two streams is about 13.5 miles 

in a straight line. The breadth of the outer rim of the basin in an 

eastwest diameter is somewhat indefinite, but measures approximately 50 miles. 

The outer rim of the Harney artesian basin ·is sharply limited on 

the southeast from near Andrews northeast to beyond Juniper Lake, 

a distance of 50 or 60 miles, by the east base of St,ein Mountain. Its 

east,ern border is in t,he Crow Creek Hills, and from these it passes 

northward and curves about the head branches of Silvies River, and 

then, bending southward, passes t,o the west of Silver Lake, Iron Mountain, and south of Harney Lake to the souree of Donner and Blitzen 

River. The border is well defined, except in the broad region, with 

comparatively mild relief to t,he southwest of Silver and Harney lakes, 

where the strata are in general nearly flat. The basin is not a single 

saucer-shaped depression, but consists of at least two troughs or 

synclines, one in the region drained by Silvies River and the other 

on the west side of Stein ~fountain and drained by Donner and Blitzen 

River. There are, besides, other folds and irregularities which it is 

not necessary to describe at this time. 

The statements just given indicate that the Harney artesian basin 

has a structure such as is favorable for the accumulation of water in 

any porous beds which may be present, but before it is decisively 

pronounced an artesian basin other evidenee should be obtained. 
RUSSELL.] HARNEY .ARTESI.AN B.ASIN. 39 

SPRINGS. 

There are several warm and hot springs in the broad, generally flat 

region about :Malheu!' and Harney lakes, but only a few of these were 

visited by the writer. . 

Bnrns.-On the border of Harney Valley, beginning about 3 miles 

southwest of Burns, a number of springs come to the surface at the 

base of a cliff of basaltic agglomerate. These have. a temperature of 

from 75° to 80° F. The surface elevation is about 4,100 feet by aneroid, or the same as the general level of the broad, flat lands flooring 

the valley to the south of Harney and Burns. These springs are of 

considerable volume, and, as I have been informed, flow throughout 

the year without sensible variations either in volume or temperature. 

The water is drunk by stoek, but is not used for irrigation except so 

far as the raising of wild hay is concerned. 

Little Sage Hen ralley.-A 1iumber of springs come to the surface 

in the flat, alluvial lands forming the bottom of Little Sage Hen Valley, and, spreading over the land, serve t,o irrigate extensive natural 

meadow!'. Their temperature is in general 63° to G4 o F. 

Silve1· Lake.-On the west, side of Silver -Lake, and along Silver· 

Creek, bet,ween it and Harney Lake, there are several warm and hot 

springs, flowing only during the rainy season, the waters of which 

serve to nattually irrigate -the adjacent lands. The valley of Silver 

Creek is a broad, flat, swampy meadow, on which great quantities of 

wild hay are cut every year. 

Harney La.ke.-To the southeast of Harney Lake and about onehalf mile from its shol'e, there is a spring of elear, tast,f'less water, with 

a temperature of from 1±5° to 150° F. The volume is by estimate 

about 6 gallons per f!econd. An attempt to utilize the water for irrigation has been abandoned. The spring is situated near the south 

base of a bold hill, composed mainly of sandstone, and rises through 

soft,, usually 'vhite, lacustral seqiments resemhling the Payette 

formation. 

JJialheur Lake.-In the bed of Malheur Lake, near its southern end, 

and exposed in summer when the lake is low, there are small springs 

with a temperature of 64° F. Copious hot springs occur near the 

eastern end o{ the lake and at a distance of J or 5 miles from the bold 

bordering uplands of the valley, but these were not visited by me. 

Swmnary.-All of the springs enumerated above pres~nt the usual 

characteristiCS of warm and hot springR, a.Hd furnish eVidence that 

water und~r pressure exists below the surface. They are widely 

separated, and in all instances except, perhaps, at the locality nearBurns, rise t,hrough the soft beds which floor the Harney basin. rrheir· 

high temperature in several instances indicates that the water rises·. 

from a considerable depth, but not from a depth greater than that towhich the beds in the basal portion of the basin are depressed. In. 

this connection I may state that the lacustral sedimeL. s exposecl 
40 ARTESIAN BASINS IN IDAHO AND OREGON. [NO. 78. 

beneath 4,500 feet of basalt on the west side of Stein Mountain dip westward at an angle of 3° or 4: o, their inclination gradually decreasing, 

however, with distance from the outcrop, and it is reasonable to assume 

that t,hey pass under Harney Valley at a depth of certainly 6,000, and 

probably of 10,000 or more feet. Similar eYidence of the great thickness of the strata which are deformed so as to make the Harney artesian 

.basin is furnished in the portion of its upraised rim that forms the 

-mountains to t.he west of Harney and Burns. Porous beds at any such 

·depth as that just considered, however, are, for practical purposes, 

beyond the reach of the drill; but as the heated water, in several 

-instances, rises to the surface through the strata forming the upper 

-portion of the great series of rocks involYed in the deformation of the 

-basin, and through sedimentary deposits of later date now forming 

-the floor of Harney Valley, there are reasons for believing that the 

porous beds near the surface haYe been charged hi part with water 

J:rom below and furnish artesian conditions. 

DRILLED -wELLS. 

In addition to the testimony furnished by the geological structure 

.-and by springs, certain borings made near Harney and Burns favor 

the hope t,hat flowing water can be had at a moderate depth in Harney 

Yallev. " . Hanwy.-About 5 miles east of Harney, on land belonging to Fred 

Raines, sec. 2, T. 23 S., R. H2:! E., a ·well 3 inches in cliamet.er, drilled 

in 1896 to a depth of 507 feet, struck water at a depth of between 200 

.and 300 feet, which rose to the surfaee. The well is not cased, and 

the water now stands 6 feet below the surface and has a temperature 

of Ml° F. The material passed through was soft to a depth of 100 

feet, and below that depth consisted of black lava, clay, etc., but no 

definite record is available. This well at first yielded a true artesian 

flow, but, as nearly as can be judged, has caved in, owing to lack 

-of casing, and the water supply at present is from percolation through 

porous beds near the surface. The temperature of the water now 

being pumped indicates that it comes from about 50 feet below the 

:Surface and has its ultimate source in t,he neighboring hills. The 

-cost of drilling the well was $1 per foot.. 

Burns.-A well drilled at the e;xpense of Harney County in 1893, 

.at a locality about 6 miles southeast of Burns, in sec. 13, ,._I\ 23 S., 

R. 31 E., was continued to a depth of 8±8 feet. The well at the top 

has a diameter of 6 inches, but narrows near the bottom to 4 inches. 

At the depth of i350 feet water was reached which rose and overflowed 

at the surface, but after an attempt to improve the well, made in the 

spring of 1902, it ceased to flow. ,._rhe water in August, 1902, stood 3 

feet below the surface and had a temperature of 4£1° F. The first 100 

feet of material passed thro~1gh was sand, gravel, and soft rock, and 

.at a greater depth hard rock was penetrated, but no record as to its 
!RUSSELL.] HARNEY ARTESIAN BASIN. 41 

nature, etc., is available. Two water-bearing strata are said to have 

been reached, one at 350 feet from the top, and the other at the horizon, where drilling was discontinued, namely, 840 feet. The outflow 

from the first water-bearing layer is said to have been small. The 

well is cased with iron tubing, 6 inches in diameter, to a depth, as 

reported, of 450 feet. The cost to Harney County was $2,400, not 

including the casing. The drilling was done by George W. Kellogg, 

of Salt Lake Uity, Utah. Work is said to haye been abandoned on 

.account of the loss of drilling tools in the well. 

A well drilled on land belonging to Thomas :McCormick, about 5 

miles southeast of Burns, in sec. 12, T. 31 S., R. 24: E., completed in 

1900, 6 inches in diameter, has a total depth of 68 feet ... The water 

now rises to within 113 feet of the surface and yielded 100 gallons per 

hour by pumping. The material passed through was soft, and water 

is reported to have been reached in blue 9lay. The cost of drilling 

the well was $85 and of the casing $21. 

Su/mma1·y.-The evidence furnished by the drill holes in Harney 

Valley is meager, but so far as it goes it favors the hope that artesian water can be had throughout an extensive territory. 

The well near Harney and the county well near Bnrns furnished 

flowing water and, I feel justified in affirming, would have continued 

to flow and to furnish a valuable water supply in each case had they 

been properly cased and cared for. 

The well on Mr. McCormick's land is too shallow to be of significance in judging of the artesian conditions at the locality where it is 

situated. 

Nearly all t,he evidence I have been able to gather in reference to 

the geological structure, the warm and hot springs, and the results of 

drilling cel'tainly favor the conclusion that beneath the extensive 

plain east of Harney and Burns, on which J\falheur and Harney lakes 

are ~ituated, there is an artesian basin. 

Conditions which may exert an adverse influence upon the value of 

the basin, so far as flowing wells are concerned; are the low pass on 

t,he northeast of Malheur Lake, through which the water of that lake 

formerly escaped, and the somewhat indefinite ch~i·acter of the rim 

of the basin to the south of Silver Lake. In addition are the "accidents" that, may be present in any artesian basin, such as changes in 

the texture of the beds, the occurrence of breaks across the strata, 

and the presence of dikes. 

In reference to the low pass which extends in an easterly direction 

from the flat country east of Malheur I.ake through the hills to Camp 

Creek, it is evidently the lowest place in the rim of the Harney artesian basin and may perhaps determine the artesian head within the 

basin, but there are reasons for delaying a conclusion in this connection. The cbann~l referred to is strongly defined and has a broad, 

level floor, formed by a recent basaltic lava flow. The bott.om of the 
42 ARTESIAN BASINS IN IDAHO AND OREGON. [NO, 78. 

previously cut river channel is thus concealed and is at least 20 to 30, 

and perhapE; more, feet below the present surface. The highest point 

in the pass or old river bed (as shown, I have been informed, by surveys made with the view of drawing off the waters of :Malheur Lake 

for irrigation purposes in .Malheur Valley) is but 20 feet above the 

level of Malheur Lake. Evidently, t,hen, the buried stream channel 

beneath the lava is lower than the broad valley lands about JHalheur 

and Harney lakes and eut,s across any porous bed that occupies t,he 

entire extent of the basin. If water-charged porous beds were cut by 

the channel, springs would be expect,ecl to occur in it. No springs 

are present: however, and it, is possible that the siHing ·over of the 

porous beds and the burial of the silt beneath lava has sealed them, 

so as to prevent the escape of water from them. While this is not 

such an indefinite hypothesis as it may at first seem, it, does not remove 

all anxiety in reference to the influence of t,he old river channel 

referred to 011 the artesian conditions in Harney Valley. rrhe question here raised cannot be answered by the facts 110\V known; neit.her 

can a positive opinion be expressed in reference to thlj position of the 

rocks to the southwest of Silver Lake, but my judgment is that neither 

of these possibly adverse conditions is of sufficient weight to discourage the drilling of test wells in Harney Valley. 

From the elevations of the several localities at which warm and hot. 

springs issue and of the surface of t,he two wells referred to above, 

the artesian head may be assumed to he at such an elevat,ion that 

wells below the level of Harney or Burns would furnish a surface 

flow of water. The area of the basin below the horizon stated can 

not be accurately told at present,, but em~races practically all the 

level land in Harney Valley about Malheur and Harney lakes and 

probably also the flat lands in the valley of Silver Creek and about 

Silver Lake. Extensive tracts of rich land in the region ~lrained by 

Donner and Blitzen River are also within the area in which a1·tesian 

water may reasonably be expected if drill holes properly eased are 

put down. A rough estimate based on the general map of Oregon, 

issued by the United States Laud Office, indicates t,hat, t,he area 

within which artesian water may be expected is in the neighborhood 

of 1,000 square miles, but this ineludes Malheur and Harney lakes 

and the swamps borclerin~ them. 

To t.est the artesian eonditions in the Harney basin, wells may be 

put clown at any locality below th\3 level of Burns or Harney. Perhaps the most favorable situations are near the warm and hot springs 

referred to, and at such places wells should be drilled on the side of 

the spring chosen, which is in t,he direction of the center of the basin 

or, in general, toward :Malheur or Harney I_Jake. The depth to which 

wells should be drilled must be determined by experiment, as sufficient informat,ion is not in hand in reference to the sections exposed 

in the rim of the basin to warrant a judgment in this connection. 
RUSSELL.] WHITEHORSE .ARTESIAN BASIN. 43' 

The successful well near Harney and Burns, however, suggests that 

favorable results may be expected anywhere in the basin below their 

surface elevation, at a depth of less than a thousand feet and possibly at a depth of only a few hundred feet. The possibilities of thebasin, however, will not be exhausted when the dl'ill has reached a. 

depth of even 1,.000 feet or, indeed, at a depth of 5 or 10 times that 

mea~ure. 

In the development of the basin an effort should be made t,o discover all of the water-bearing beds t,hat ~ue pr·esent within a reasonabledistanee below the stuface, and in ease several wells are drilled near 

eaeh other, they should, so far as practicable, derive their water supply from different, strata. 

WHITEHORSE ARTESIAN BASIN. 

Stein :Mountain, as already st,ated, is the western slope of a great 

antieline. The eentral part of the upward fold referred to has _been 

deeply eroded, and where faults occur, a snbsiclenee has taken place. 

'l..,he positi?n of the central and now deeply eroded portion of this great 

fold is occupied by Alvord Desert and the sharp-crested ridges running northeast from it. To the east of t,he Stein JUonntlain anticlineor upward fold t,bere is a fiat-bottomed syncline· or downward fold, in 

which Whitehorse Valley is situated. The rocks beneath this valley 

are bent into basin shape and the rim of the basin is high on all 

sides except the one adjacent to Alvord Valley. The roeks which 

have been bent, so as to form a basin consist of reddish and brownish 

rhyolitic tuff in which angular fragments are conspicuous, black 

basalt, and light-colored and usually nearly white laeustral sediments 

and sheets of volcanic dust, resembling those characteristic of the 

Payette format,ion. The thickness of the beds exposed in the upraised 

rim of the basin-as, for example, in the mountains between WhHehorse Valley and Oregon Canyon, the next valley to the east-is several thousand feet. The bold bluffs on the west side of Oregon Canyon (whieh in the part here referreu to is a broad valley with several 

rancheR in its bott,om) are formed of the edges of the sheets of roek,. 

mostly basalt, which dip west and pass under Whitehorse Valley. 

Several springs issuing from the bluffs, 'veil above their base, indicate 

that certain of t,he beds are wat,er eharged. These springs may reasonably be supposed to be the leakage from the basin to t,be' west and 

suggest an abundant store of water beneath 'Vhitehorse Valley. 

In the southern part of 'Vhitehorse Valley, about 6 miles soua1 of 

the site of the former military post and at, an elevation of fully 150 

feet above the general level of the floor of the valley, there are springs 

with a t,emperature of about 100° F., which rise through soft whitelake beds. In the nort,hern part of the valley, about 10 miles north 

of the site of the former military post, as I have been informed, ther& 

is another warm or hot spring. 
44 ARTESIAN BASINS IN IDAHO AND OREGON. [NO. 78. 

The facts stated abo .. ~e are such as to warrant a careful test of the 

art,esian conditions in 'Vhitehorse Valley. A boring should be made 

near t,he warm springs in the south end of the basin, a few rods north 

of the localities where their water now reaches the surface. A boring 

at 'Vhitehorse ranch (the former military post,) would probably yield 

flowing water, but the chances are nearly equally favorable all along 

the east,ern side of the flat lands, which extend northward from the 

ranch for 10 or more miles. The area of good land within Whitehorse 

-valley, where it is reasonable to expect that flowing water can be 

<>btained, is by a rough estimate not, less than 30 square miles. 

In the structure of the Whitehorse artesian basin there is one condition which may be detrimental to the occurrence of water in it under 

:pressure, namely, the lowness of the rim of the basin on the west side 

in the vicinity of Sand Gap. The eroded borders of the beds emerging from beneath "\Vhitehorse Valley t,here form a line of westwardfacing bluffs, which define the east border of Alvord De~ert. For the 

1·eason that there are no springs along the base of t,hese bluffR, how-

-ever, and for other reasons, the lowness of the rim of the basin need 

not be considered sufficiently important to det,er the testing of the 

.art,esian conditions within it. 

ARTESIAN WELLS IN ALLUVIAI..~ DEPOSITS. 

In regions like southern Idaho and eastern Oregon, which have an 

arid climate, and where bold mountains are bordered by wide valleys, 

the strt>ams from the: uplands deposit much and in many instances all 

.()f the sand, gravel, etc., which t,hey bring dmvn from the high-grade 

upper portions of their courses on the border of the valley which 

-they enter. In this way alluvial cones or fans are built about the 

·:mouth of gorges where they open out onto a plain. These alluvial 

.cones are not infrequently several miles in radius at the base and sev-

€ral hundred or perhaps ::?,000 or 3,000 feet high. r:rhe apex of each 

-cone is at the month of or some distance within the gorge from ~hich 

the debris of which it is composed was derived, and from which a 

stream usually flows, at least during a part of each year. These beds 

<Of debris are thus in a position to become water charged, and their 

.structure is such that pervious beds may be confined between impervious beds. Large alluvial cones may t,hus furnish conditions for the 

storage of water under pressure, and especially on the outer portion 

may yield flowing water if drill holes are put down. 

Alluvial cones are sometimes greatly extended and have low surface slope, and in fact merge by insensible gradations into -the flood 

plains of streams. This is frequently the case in ariel regions, where 

the valleys are in manyinst,ances deeply filled with alluvium. Valleys 

when thus partially filled have broad, flat boUoms, with a perceptible 

gradient, or surface slope down their courses. In such instances the 

surface material is usually fine, but becomes coarse at a depth of a 
RUSSELL.] WEI,LS IN ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS. 45 

few feet or a few score feet below the surface, and as the beds are gently 

inclined the coarse beds at a depth may be charged with water underpressure. If flowing water is obtained by drilling in alluvial cones 

or flood-plain deposits it is normally cold, for the reaAon that it has 

not descended into the earth far enough to be influenced by the interior temperat,ure of the earth. The wat.er is similar to that supplied 

by hillside springs, and in Idaho and Oregon would have a temperature of about 50° F. 

There are a few localities in the region examined by me in Idaho and 

Oregon where the conditions warrant the drilling of shallow wells iu 

alluvial cones on flood plains. Some of these located in Idaho are 

mentioned in Bulletin 19fl, already referred to. In Oregon test,s of the 

nature referred to should be made in Willow Creek Valley, t,o the 

northwest of Vale, and in neighboring fiat-bottomed valleys which 

have a perceptible downstream slope. 

The alluvial cones on the east side of Stein :Mountain, at the mouths 

of gulches down which streams flow, should also be t,ested with the 

drill. The most promising localities for such t,ests are from the outer~ 

margin o{ a cone to midway up its slope. 'Vhen the cones are steep, 

however, the chance of water being stored in them under pressure 

decreases rapidly as their summit portions are- approached. '.rhe test. 

referred to should he carried down to at least the level of t,he fiat 

lands in the adjacent valley unless favorable results are sooner· 

reached. 

SIZE OF DRILL HOLES, THE CASING OF "\VELLS, ETC. 

In the development of the artesian conditions of the Lewis artesian 

basin, as experience has already shown, light, port,able drilling rigs. 

will probably be all that are required, since the beds t,o be penetrated 

are soft. In the other artesian basins named, however, it seems highly 

desirable that only the most efficient of drilling machinery should he 

employed, as hard rocks will have to be penetrated in probably all 

wells that are more than a very few hundred feet deep. An extensive 

experience in drilling wells in the oil fields of the UnHed States has 

shown that the best outfit for use in t,he artesian basins of Oregon is 

the square derrick walkitlg-beam rig, provided with the best tools. 

that can be procured. It is perhaps needless to add that only well 

drillers of wide experience and known integrity should be employed. 

The wells to he put clown should, in my opinion, be 8 inches in diameter, or drills of this size should he use to as great a depth as possible 

before tapering the hole to any smaller size. 

In all instances the ·well.s cZ.n:ZZed shou.Zcl be well cased zvith l'I'On cctsing. 

Neglect in this particular has led t,o failures in many instances in 

both Idaho and Oregon where success, as there are reasons forbelieving, would have been attained if p1·oper casing had been put in. 

For the sake of emphasizing the statement just made, it may be truUlfully said that water should not be expected to rise in a hole drilled 
46 ARTESIAN BASINS IN IDAHO AND OREGON. [NO. 78. 

through rocks of various descriptions, many of them, as is usually 

the case, being porous, any more. than it shoul1l be expected to remain 

in a standpipe full of holes rising above the surface of the ground. 

The water in an artesian well is 1UH1er pressure-f1;eqnently great 

pressnre-and tends to flow laterally wherever the rocks are porous or 

fissured. .l\Im·e than this, the walls of an uncased well are apt to caye 

and thus render useless all the ~work that has been expended on it. 

In drilling a well t,he pressure of tlw \Vater at eaeh horizon where it 

is eneountered should be ca1·efully tested. One way of doing this is 

to lower a tube into the well, such, for example, as a three-fourths-inch 

iron pipe, with a leather bag filled with flaxseed eneircling it near 

the lower encl. The pipe should be lowered until its end is just aboye 

the place where water was struck. In such an experiment the flaxseed will swell and expand the hag f'ontaining it so as to shut off the 

escape of water about the outside of the pipe and allow it, to rise 

within it. If the water overflows at the surface of the ground it 

demonskate~, of course, that an artesian flow has been secured, and 

if the pipe is continued upward U1e height to whieh the water rises 

within it will show the artesian head. Other suggestions in this conllection may be found in a paper by Chamberlin, and in a report on 

Nez Perce Count,y, No. 3 and No. ::n, respectively, of the list at the 

-end of this report. 

_ 'Veils should be located as far apart as practieable, and when t,wo 

:<>r more water-bearing beds are present neighboring wells should have 

different depths, so as to draw their water supply from different 

.sources. The distribution of wells in reference to the dirPction of 

flow of t,he undet·ground water is also important. Obviously, if there 

is to be a series of wells, more or less in line, their alignment should 

be at right angles to the direction of underground flow, so as to 

decrease to a minimum the influence that one well exerts on it,s 

neigh~Jor. Information in this connection is contained in the paper 

by Chamberlin, No. 3 of the list at the end of this report. 

PRESERVATION 0~, WELL RECORDS. 

If wells are drilled in the artesian basins described in this report a 

e.arefnl record of all facts concerning them should be preserved. This 

is a matter of great inportance to all the people interested in the 

development of the at·tesian basins, and may lead to a great, saving of 

money in other directions. As a practical method of obtaining and 

preserving information referred to, I wish to suggest that it be made 

the official duty of the county clerk in m·ery eounty where drill holes 

are }JUt down for any purposo to ohtain and preserve a recor('l of the 

facts relating to them. To assist in doing this a schedule is here 

inserted which can be printed, and whieh, after being filled in with 

the data required, should be filed at the county clerk's office for future 

referenee. The schedule referred to is as follows (for greater convenience each item should be given a separate line): 
RUSSELL.] PRESERVATION OF RECORDS. 47 

WELL RECORD. 

County. ---; State, ---. 

County clerk,------. No. --. Date,----, 190-. 

Owner of well, ------. Driller of well, ------. Post-office address, 

------. Location of well: Township --, range --, sec. --. When 

completed,-----.-. How put down: Dug, driven, bored, drilled,---. Size 

or diameter,---. Depth: Total,-- feet: to water,--feet: depth of water, 

--feet. Did water rise when struck? ---. Dces water flow over surface? 

Height to which the water will rise in au open tube.---. Has the 

flow diminished or increased?---. Quality of water: Hard, soft. salty, alkaline,---. Temperature of the water,---. How is water raised? ---. 

Cost of well,$--. Cost of mill and pump,$--. Is the well cased?-.--. Cost 

of casing,--. Amount pumped or flow per hour or clay,---. Water used 

for---. Elevation of surface,-- feet. 

Strata passed through and remarks: ------. 

LAWS. 

As the water supply in an artesian basin may become of importance 

to a large number of citizens, it is obvious that laws governing its use 

are as necessary as the laws relating to surface waters, but, so·far as I 

am aware, only one attempt t.o place legal restrictions on the utilization, or rather on t.he waste, of subsurface waters has been made in this 

conntry,a and that act fails in t.wo particulars to meet the requirements outlined above- the proper casing of wells is not ma<le obligatory, and the filling of abandoned wells is not provided for. Each of 

t.hese eegulations is highly important. 

The principal restrictions and conditions whieh it is desirable should 

be established and enforced by law are as follows: 

1. EPery drill hole in an artesian basin should be properly cased.-

By this is meaut, that, an iron casing or tube lining the hole and made 

sufficiently tight to prevent wat.er from rising outside of it should be 

put in every well which remains open. · The lower end of the casing 

should be just above the water-bearing stratum. 

a The following law providing for the conservation of artesian water has been passed by the 

legislature of the State of Washington: 

CHAPTER CXXI. 

(H. B. No. 203.1 

RELATING TO ARTESIAN WELLS. 

AN ACT in relation to artesian wells and regulating the flow of water therefrom, and providing a pena1ty for the violation thereof. 

Be it enacted by the legislature of the State of TVashington: 

SECTION 1. It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, corporation, or company having possession or control of any artesian wells within ~e State, whether as contractor, owner, lessee, 

agent, or manager, to allow or permit water to flow or escape from such well between the first 

day of October in any year and the first day of April next ensuing: Prot,ided, That this act shall 

only apply to sections and communities wherein the use of water for the purpose of irrigation 

is necessary or customary, and providing further, that nothing herein contained shall prevent or prohibit the use of water from any such well between said first day of Octqber and the 

first day of April next ensuing for household, stock, and domestic purposes only, water for said 

last-named purposes to be taken from such wells through a one-half inch stop and waste cock 

to be inserted in the piping of such well for that purpose. 

SEC. 2. It shall be the duty of every person, firm, corporation, or company having possession 
48 ARTESIAN BASINS IN IDAHO AND OREGON. [NO. 78. 

The reason why the owner of a well should be required by law to 

properly case it, as already explained in reference to t,he personal 

interest of the owner himself, is that lateral escape of the water may 

be prevented. The escape of water from an artesian basin in excess of 

the natural overflow means a decrease in pressure on the portions 

remaining, and consequent,ly a lowering of the artesian head. In arid 

regions especially the sources of supply of an artesian basin may be 

small, and the question of economically using the water it contains 

and of maintaining the artesian head are matters of public concern. 

2. Et•ery artesian ·well when not ·in ·use shou,ld be secnrely closed.-

The reason why a law to this effect should be enacted and enforced 

is that an artesian basin is not an inexhaustible reservoir, and every 

practicable means sho"Uld be employed for its conservation and legitimat,e us~. The closing of an artesian well when its water is not 

being used would in many and -perhaps most instances be an advantage to its owner as well as to his neighb01:s, not only for the reason 

that his water supply would be made more permanent, but because 

water flowing over land in excess of the amount required for scientific 

irrigation is injurious. 

There are exceptional cases in which it is not desirable that an artesian well should be closed at any time, as, for example, when a well is 

no more than a developer1 spring, or derives its water from what is 

known as an artesian slop~,a but as such wells will probably be few 

in number in the artesian basins described in this report, special 

legislation in reference t,o them is perhaps not desirable. 

or control of any artesian well, as provided in section 1 of this act, to securely cap the same over 

on oro before the first day of October in each and every year in such manner as to prevent the 

flow or escape of water therefrom, and to keep the same securely capped and prevent the flow 

or escape of water therefrom until the first day of April next ensuing: Provided, howet•eT, It 

shall and may be lawful for any such person, firm, corporation, or company to insert a one-half 

inch stop and waste cock in the piping of such well, and to take and use water therefrom 

through such stop and waste cock at any time for household; stock, or domestic purposes, but. 

not otherwise. 

SEc. 3. Any person, whether as owner, lessee, agent, or manager, having possession or control 

of any such well, violating the provisions of this act shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, 

and upon conviction thereof shall he fined in any sum not exceeding two hundred dollars for 

each and every such offense, and the further sum of two hundred dollars for each ten days during which such violation shall continue. 

SEc. 4. Whenever any person, firm, corporation, or company in possession or control of an 

artesian well shall fail to comply with the provisions of this act, any person, firm, corporation, or company lawfully in the possession of land situate adjacent to or in the vicinity or 

neighborhood of such well and within five miles thereof may enter upon the land upon which 

such well is situate, and take possession of such well from which water is allowed to flow or 

escape in violation of the provisions of section 1 of this act, and cap such well and shut in and 

secure the flow or escape of water therefrom, and the necessary expenses incurred in so doing 

shall constitute a lien upon said well, and a sufficient quantity of land surrounding the same for 

the convenient US9 and operation thereof, which lien may be foreclosed in a civil action in any 

court of competent jurisdiction, and the court in any such case shall allow the plaintiff a reasonable attorney's fee to be taxed as a part of the cost. This shall be in addition to the penalty provided for in section 3 of this act. 

Passed the house March 7,1901. 

Passed the senate March 14, 1901. 

Approved by the governor March 16, 1001. 

a The nature of an artesian slope is explained in the report numbered 21 in the list at the end 

of this paper, page 112. 
RUSSELL.] LAWS. 49 

3. Every abandonecl d'rill hole in an artesian bas,in sho·uld be completel,y filled with hnpervimts nude1·ial.-A desirable way in which to 

do this is to fill the hole slowly with moist clay and ram it down with 

a heavy, blunt tool, or fill the hole with Portland cement concrete. 

Tightly fitting rods of dry wood driven into a drill hole until it is 

filled would serve the same purpm;;e. . 

Abandoned wells should be filled in the manner suggested in order 

t.hat leakage may be prevented. Wells in which water rises some 

distance toward the surface but does not overflow are frequently 

abandoned, t,he casing, if any was used, having first been drawn, and 

in such instances a continuous escape of water occurs into cracks, 

porous beds, etc., about the hole. 

The three rules briefly stated above should be embodied in the laws 

of every State in which artesian basins occur and their observance 

should be rigorously enforced. 

For the proper development of an artesian basin it is evident that 

there should be but one center of responsibility. A desirable method 

of securing this end would be to place the entire control of the artesian wells in each State in the hands of a State engineer, whose duty 

it should be to determine where wells may be drilled, the depth to 

which they may be ca1·ried, and methods for caring for the water supply, closing abandoned drill holes, etc. 

While the aim of this preliminary report is to stimulate and direct 

the search for artesian water in t.he region that has been considered, 

I do not wish to be understood as saying that all of the 2,000 or more 

square miles of rich lands contained in the four basins described can 

be irrigated by means of artesian water. The facts are plainly such 

as to warrant the careful testing of the artesian possibilities, but 

owing to local conditions, which are at present unknown, many difficulties will no doubt be encountered and numerous failures may 

occur, and even when all the wells which the water supply will justify 

have been put down in any one of the basins referred to there will 

no doubt remain extensive areas that can not be irrigated. While 

good results may reasonably be expected from the judicious development of the artesian basins, all the benefits that might be derived in 

that way will be rendered negative unless the suggestions given above 

in reference to the conservation of the water supply are strictly 

observed. I may perhaps add as a warning that the wanton destruction of the forests in this country and the now almost complete ruin 

of the public gfrazing lands throughout the arid regions leave but little hope that man's greed will be so far restricted in the case of artesian basins that ultimate failures will be avoided. 

IRR 78-03--4 
50 ARTESIAN BASINS IN IDAHO AND OREGON. [NO. 78. 

LITERATURE. 

The following-named books and papers contain information in 

reference t,o artesian wells which should be of much assistance to 

persons desiring to develop artesian basins: 

1. BARBOUR, E. H. Wells and windmills in Nebraska: Water-Supply and Irrigation Paper U.S. Geol. Survey No. 29. 

2. CARLL, J. F. Report on the oil regions of Pennsylvania: Second Geological 

Survey of Pennsylvania, Vol. III, 1880. 

This report contains a detailed account of the methods used in drilling 

wells. 

3. CHAMBERLIN, T. C. The requisite and qualifying conditions of artesian wells: 

Fifth Ann. Rept. U.S. Geol. Survey, pp. 125-173. 

This paper contains a clear and comprehensive explanation of the geologic conditions pertaining to artesian wells. 

4. DARTON, N. H. Artesian-well prospects in the Atlantie Coastal Plain region: 

Bull. U. S. Geol. Survey No. 138. 

5. -- New developments in well boring and irrigation in eastern South Dakota: 

Eighteenth Ann. Rept. U.S. Geol. Survey, Pt. JV, pp. 561-616. 

6. -- Preliminary report on artesian waters of a portion of the Dakotas: 

Seventeenth Ann. Rept. U. S. Geol. Survey. Pt. II, pp. 603-694. 

7. -- Preliminary report on the geology and water resources of Nebraska 

west of the one hundred and third meridian: Nineteenth Ann. Rept. U.S. 

Geol. Survey, Pt. IV, pp. 719-785. 

8. -- Underground waters of southeastern Nebraska: Water-Supply and Irrigation Paper U.S. Geol. Survey No. 12. 

9. GILBERT, G. K. The underground water of the Arkansas Valley in eastern 

Colorado: Seventeenth Ann. Rept. U. S. Geol. Survey, Pt. II, pp. 551-601. 

10. HAY, ROBERT. Water resources of a portion of the Great Plains: Sixteenth 

Ann. Rept. U.S. Geol. Survey, Pt. II, pp. 535-588. 

11. HILL, R. T., and VAUGHAN. T. W. Geology of portions of the Edwards 

Plateau and Rio Grande Plain adjacent to San Antonio, Tex., with special 

referenee to the occurrence of artesian and other underground waters: 

Eighteenth Ann. Rept. U.S. Geol. Survey, Pt. II, pp. 193-322. 

12. LANE, A. C. Water resources of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan: Water 

Supply and Irrigation Paper U.S. Geol. Survey No. 30. 

13. LEVERETT, FRANK. The water resourees of Illinois: Seventeenth Ann. Rept. 

U.S. Geol. Survey, Pt. II, pp. 695-849. 

14. -- Well waters of Ohio and Indiana: Eighteenth Ann. Rept. U.S. Geol. 

Survey, Pt. IV, pp. 419-.560. 

15. -- Wells of northern Indiana: Water-Supply and Irrigation Paper U. S. 

Geol. Survey No. 21. 

16. -- Wells of southern Indiana: Water-Supply and Irrigation Paper U.S. 

Geol. Survey No. 26. 

17. ORTON, EDWARD. The rock waters of Ohio: Nineteenth Ann. Rept. U. S. 

Geol. Survey, Pt. IV, pp. 633-717. 

18. -- The Trenton limestone as a source of petroleum and inflammable gas 

in Ohio and Indiana: Eighth Ann. Rept. U.S. Geol. Survey, Pt. I, pp. 

475-662. 

19. PECKHAM, S. F. Report on the production, technology, and uses of petroleum 

and its products: Tenth Census of the United States, Vol. X, Washington, 

1888. 

The methods of drilling wells, together with detailed plans and descriptions of maehinery, derricks, tools, torpedoes, etc., are given on pages 77 

to 85. 
RUSSELL.] LITERATURE. 

20. PHINNEY, A. J. The natural-gas field of Indiana: Eleventh Ann. Rept. U. S. 

Geol. Survey, Pt. I, pp. 579-742. 

21. RussELL, I. C. Geology and water resources of Nez Perce County, Idaho: 

Water-Supp1y and Irrigation Paper U.S. Geol. Survey Nos. 53 and 54. 

22. -- Geology and water resources of the Snake River Plains of Idaho: Bull. 

U.S. Geol. Survey No. 199. 

23. -- A geological reconnaissance in central Washington: Bull. U.S. Geol. 

Survey No. 108. 

24. SMITH, G. 0. Geology and water resources of a portion of Yakima County, 

Wash.: Water-Supply and Irrigation Paper U.S. Geol. Survey No. 55. 

25. ToDD, J Al'IES EDWARD. Geology and water resources of a portion of southeastern South Dakota: Water-Supply and Irrigation Paper U. ·s. Geol. 

Survey No. 34. 

26. VAUGHAN, T. W., and HILL, R. T. (See Hill.) 

INDEX. 

Page. 

Alluvial deposits, artesian wells in.------ 44-45 

Anhdine, example of-----------------··-· 23 

Artesian basin, conditions necessary 

for ••.... ·--------------·------- 10-14 cross sections of typicaL •••... ----____ 13 

Artesian basins, description of •• ···--···· 24-44 

Artesian head, conditions controlling and 

manner of determining------- 12 

Artesian water, source of. ..... ·--·------- 13 

surface indications of ....... --·- ...... 14-15 

Artesian well, definition of·-------------- 10 

Bernard Ferry, Idaho, wells near ..•..... 32-33 

Basalt, occurrence and character of...... 19 

Beulah, Oreg., springs near_______________ 29 

Boise, Idaho, springs near---------------- 27 

wells near_ ..... _ ...••••....•.....•..... 29-30 

Bruneau Valley, Idaho, springs in------- 27 

wells in _ ...... -----•••.•• -------- _ ...•• 30-31 

Bully Creek, Oreg., spling near •... _..... 29 

Burns, Oreg., springs near ...•...... ---··· 39 

wells near .••... --···-.................. 40-42 

Casing of wells, necessity of. ....... 45--46,47-48 

Central, Idaho, wells near_._ .. _ .... _ ... _ _ 32-33 

temperature and depth of_........... 35 

Conglomerate, extent of------............ 16 

Davis ranch, Idaho, well on------------·- 29 

Dikes, occurrence of-------------~-------- 21 

Drill holes, size of. ..... ---------- ...... ____ 45 

abandoned, necessity for filling...... 49 

Drilled wells, in. Harney artesian basin __ 40-43 

in Lewisartesian basin ......•...•..... 29-37 

Earth, temperature of, increase of, with 

depth ____ • ------------- ____ ____ 14 

Enterprise, Idaho, spring near •• ________ . 21 

wells"near ______ -------------- ____ ------ 33-34 

temperature and depth of_________ 35 

Faults, description of-----------·-________ 23 

Flow in artesian basin, conditions of ____ . 10-14 

Folds. descriptions of ____ .·--------------- 22-23 

Fossils, occurrence of __ .... -----·_-------- 1'7 

Guffey. Idaho, wells near---··----·------- 32 

temperature and depth of···------ 35 

Harney Oreg., wells near---·---~-------- 40 

Harney artesian basin, description of ____ 38-43 

springs in-------···-------------------- 39-40 

wells in ---··- --··--. ----· -------------- 40-43 

Harney Lake, Oregon, springs near_. ___ . 39 

Height of water 1n an artesian well, con-

. ditions controlling-----------· 12 

Hot Spring, Idaho, springs near ... ~------ 27 

Hulls Gulch, Idaho, wells in-------------· 29 

Igneous rocks, description of---- ____ ----- 18-21 

Laws for conservation of artesian water, 

discussion of ___________________ 47-49 

Page. 

Literature, list of ...•.••••••• --------.----- 50-51 

Little Sage Hen Valley, Oregon, springs 

in.------ ••.•.• ------------.--·-· 39 

Little Valley, Idaho, springs in .•••..• ---- 27 

wells in-------------------------------- 31-32 

Malheur Lake, Oregon, springs near._.__ 39 

Malheur River, springs near-------------- 28 

Mountain Home, Idaho, springs near ____ 26-27 

Newell, F. H., letter of transmittal by... 7 

Ontario, Oreg., wells near---------------- 34 

Otis artesian basin, description of ........ 37--38 

Owy hee Canyon, Oregon, spring near . . . 28 

Payette formation, extent and character 

of.-------·---------------------. 

Pence, A. H., well of ....•. -------------··· Plutonic rocks, occurrence and character 

of. ____ ----------------------···-

17 

31 

21 

Poison Creek, Idaho, springs near ________ 27-28 

Pressure of water, conditions controlling 

and manner of determining _. 12 

Rattlesnake Creek, Idaho, springs near_. 26-21 

Rhyolite, occurrence and character of... 20 

Roberson's ranch, Idaho, well at-----·--- 30-31 

Rocks of region, classification and description of-------------------- 16-21 

Salmon River, Idaho, springs near---··-- 27 

Sands, Idaho, springs near ________________ 27-28 

Sandstones, extent of----·-·--·---·------- 16 

Sedimentary rocks, description of----·-- 16-18 

Silver Lake, Oregon, springs near . _ --·-- 39 

Springs, Harney artesian basin---------- 39-40 Lewis artesian basin __________________ 26-29 

warm, artesian conditions indicated 

by---·-------------------------- 14-15 

Stein Mountain, Oregon, anticlines and 

synclines near---·------------- 23 

dikes on ...... ---·-·-------------------- 21 

Structure, description of·---------------- 22-24 

Syncline, example of. ..... ---------------- 23 

Temperature of the earth, increase of, 

with depth ...•.. ----- __ .... __ .. 14 

Vale, Oreg., springs near----------------- 28 

wells near .•.... -------···.............. 34 

Volcanic dust, occurrence of.............. 17 

Volcanic rocks, description of ............ 18-21 

Walters Butte, Idaho, springs near...... 27 

Warm springs, artesian conditions indicated by .............•......•..• 14-15 

Water, artesian, height of, conditions 

controlling--------.•.. --------- 12 

source of __ ..... ____ -----------·------··- 13 

surface indications of-----------·----- 14-15 

Well, artesian, definition of_______________ 10 

Wells, artesian, closing of, necessity for. 48 

Lewis artesian basin, description of----- 24-37 Wells, drilled, in Harney artesian basin .• 40-44. 

in Lewis artesian basin--------------- 29-37 

37 Well records, preservation of-------·---- 46-47 

dt•illed wells in------_ ..... ______ ---··- 29-37 

eastward extension of_ ...... _---·- ___ _ 

springs in ....••..•.••. --- __________ ·--- 26-29 Westfall, Oreg., springs near------------- 28-29 

c1ted on wells near Boise______________ 29 Whitehorse artesian basin, description of. 43-44 

Lindgren, W ., cited on Payette formation. 17 Whitson's ranch, Idaho, well at • • ... • • • •• 31 

53 

0 

LIBRARY CATALOGUE SLIPS. 

[Take this leaf out and paste the separated titles upon three of your catalogue 

cards. The first and second titles need no addition; over the third write that 

subject under which you would place the book in your library.] 

United States. Department of the inte1'ior. ( [T, B. geological 

su·rvey.) 

Water-Supply and Irrigation Paper No. 78 Seties B, Descriptive g3ology, 29 Series 0, Underground waters, 20 I Department of the interior I United States geological survey I Charles 

D. Walcott, director I -I Preliminary report I on I artesian 

basins I in I southwestern Idaho and southeastern Oregon I 

by I Israel C. Russell! [Vignette] I 

Washington I government printing office I 1903 

go. 53 pp., 2 pis. 

Russell (Israel C.). 

Water-Supply and Irrigation Paper No. 78 Series B, Descriptive geology, 2l) Series 0, Underground waters, 20 I Department of the interior I United States geological survey I Charles 

D. Walcott, director I - I Preliminary report I on I artesian 

basins I in I southwestern Idaho and southeastern Oregon I 

by I Israel C. Russell I [Vignette] I 

Washington I government printing office 11903 go. 53 pp., 2 pis. 

Water-Supply and Irrigation Paper No. 78 Series B, Descriptive geology, 29 Series 0, Underground waters, 20 I Department of the interior I United States geological survey I Charles 

D. Walcott, director I-I Preliminary report I on I artesian 

basins I in I southwestern Idaho and southeastern Oregon I 

by I Israel C. Russell I [Vignette] I 

Washington I government printing office j1903 

8°. 53 pp., 2 pls. 

SERIES L-QUALITY OF WATER. 

WS 3. Sewage irrigation, by George W. Rafter. 1897. 100 pp., 4 pls. 

WS 22. Sewage irrigation, Part II, by George W. Rafter. 1899. 100 pp., 7 pls. 

WS 72. Sewage pollution near New York City, by M. 0. Leighton. 1902. 75 pp., 8 pls. 

WS 76. Observations on the flow of rivers in the vicinity of New York City, by H. A. Pressey. 

1902. 108 pp., 13 pls. 

S.l!ll<IES M-GENERAL HYDl<OGRAPHIC INVESTIGATIONS. 

WS 56. Methods of stream measurement. 1901. 51 pp., 12 pls. 

WS 64. Accuracy of stream measurements, by E. C. Murphy. 1902. 99 pp., 4 pls. 

WS 76. Observations on the flow of rivers in the vicinity of New York City, by H. A. Pressey. 

1902. 108 pp., 13 pls. 

SERIES N-WATEl< POWER. 

WS 24. Water resources of the State of Now York, Part I, by G. W. Rafter. 1899. 92 pp., 13 pls. 

WS 25. Water resources of the State of Now York, Part II, by G. W. Rafter. 100-200 pp., 12 pls. 

WS 44. Profiles of rivers, by Henry Gannett. 1901. 100 pp., 11 pls. 

WS 62. Hydrography of the Southern Appalachian Mountain region, Part I, by H. A. Pressey. 

1902. 95 pp., 25 pls. 

WS fl.3. Hydrography of the Southern Appalachian Mountain region, Part II, by H. A. Pressey. 

1902. 96-190 pp., 26-44 pls. 

WS 69. Water powers of the State of Maine, by H. A. Pressey. 1902. 124 pp., l4 pls. 

SERIES 0-UNDEl<GROUND WATERS. 

[See last page of this cover.] 

SERIES P-HYDROGRAPHIC PROGRESS REPORTS. 

WS 11. River heights for 1896, by A. P. Davis. 1897. 100 pp. 

WS 15. Operations at river stations, 1897, Part I. 1898. 100 pp. 

WS 16. Operations at river stations, 1897, Part II. 1898. 101-200 pp. 

WS 27. Operations at river stations, 1898, Part I. 1899. 100 pp. 

WS 28. Operations at river stations, 1898, Part II. 1899. 101-200 pp. 

WS 35. Operations at river stations, 1899, Part I. 1900. 100 pp. 

WS 36. Operations at river stations, 1899, Part II. 1900. 101-198 pp. 

WS 37. Operations at river stations, 1899, Part III. 1900. 199-298 pp. 

WS 38. Operations at river stations, 1899, Part IV. 1900. 299-396 pp. 

WS 39. Operations at river stations, 1899, Part V. 1900. 397-471 pp. 

WS 47. Operations at river stations, 1900, Part I. 1901. 100 pp. · 

WS 48. Operations at river stations, 1900, Part II. 1901. 101-196 pp. 

WS 49. Operations at river stations, 1900, Part III. 1901. 197-292 pp. 

WS 50. Operations at river stations, 1900, Part IV. 1901. 293-388 pp. 

WS 51. Operations at river stations, 1900, Part V. 1901. 389-488 pp. 

WS 52. Operations at river stations, 1900, Part VI. 1901. 489-575 pp. 

WS 65. Operations at river stations, 1901, Part I. 1902. 334 pp. 

WS 66. Operations at river stations, 11!01, Part II. 1902. 188 pp. 

WS 75. Report of progress of stream measurements for the calendar year 1901, by F. H. Newell. 

1902. 246 pp., 13 pls. 

Progress reports may also be found in the following publications: Tenth Annual, Part II; 

Eleventh Annual, Part II; Twelfth Annual, Part II; Thirteenth Annual, Part III; Eighteenth 

Annual, Part IV; Nineteenth Annual, Part IV; Twentieth Annual, Part IV; Twenty-first 

Annual, Part IV; Twenty-second Annual, Part IV; Bulletin No. 131; Bulletin No. 140. 

(Continued on fourth page of cover.) 

IRR 78-3 
PAPERS RELATING ESPECIALLY TO UNDERGROUND WATERS. 

SERIES 0-UNDERGROUND WATERS. 

WS 4. A reconnaissance in southea,stern Washington, by Israel C. Russell. 1897. 96 pp., 7 pls. 

WS 6. Underground waters of southwestern Kansas, by Erasmus Haworth. 1897. 65 pp., 12pls. 

WS 7. Seepage waters of northern Utah, by Samuel Fortier. 1897. 50 pp., 3 pls. 

WS 12. Underground waters of southeastern Nebraska, by Nelson H. Darton. 1898. 56 pp., 

21 pls. 

WS 21. Wells of northern Indiana, by Frank Leverett. 1899. 82 pp., 2 pls. 

WS26. Wells of southern Indiana (continuation of No. 21), by Frank Leverett. 1899. 64 pp. 

WS 30. Water resources of the lower peninsula of 1\fichigan, by A. C. Lane. 1899. 97 pp., 7 pls. 

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 James 

Edward Todd. 1000. 34 pp., 19 pls. 

WS 53. Geology and water resources of Nez Perce County, Idaho, Part I, by I. C. Russell. 1901. 

86 pp., 10 pls. 

WS 54. Geology and water resources of Nez Perce County, Idaho, Part II, by I. C. Russell. 1901. 

87-141 pp. 

WS 55. Geology and water resources of a portion of Yakima County, Wash., by G. 0 . Smith. 

1901. 68 pp., 7 pis. 

WS57. Preliminary list of deep borings in the United States, Part I, by N.H. Darton. 1902. 

60pp. 

WS 59. Development and application of water in southern California, Part I, by J. B. Lippincott. 

1902. 95 pp., 11 pls. 

WS 60. Development and application of water in southern California, Part II, by J. B. Lippincott. 

96-140 pp. 

WS 61. Preliminary list of deep borings in the United States, Part II, by N.H. Darton. 1902. 

67pp. 

WS 67. The motions of underground waters, by C. S. Slichter. 1902. 106 pp., 8 pls. 

B 199. Geology and water resources of the Snake River Plains of Idaho, by I. C. Russell. 1902. 

192 pp., 25 pls. 

WS 77. Water resources of Molokai, Hawaiian Islands, by Waldemar Lindgren. 1903. 62 pp., 

4pls. 

WS 78. Preliminary report on the artesian basins in southwestern Idaho and southeastern 

Oregon, by I. C. Russell. 1903. - pp., 2 pls. 

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.H. 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 Dakota, 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 Coastal Plain region, by N.H. Darton, Bulletin No. 138. 

IRR 78-4