r*' 
 
 1557.73 
 Gr-16 
 c. 3 
 
 '/m 
 
 
 
 « 
 
 STATE OF ILLINOIS 
 
 DEPARTMENT OF REGISTRATION AND EDUCATION 
 
 A. M. SHELTON, Director 
 
 DIVISION OF THE 
 
 STATE GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 
 
 M. M. LEIGHTON. Chief 
 
 REPORT OF INVESTIGATIONS—NO. 16 
 
 THE OIL AND GAS RESOURCES OF THE 
 AVA-CAMPBELL HILL AREA 
 
 BY 
 
 TOWNER B. ROOT 
 
 ILLINOIS STATE LIBRARY 
 
 PRINTED BY AUTHORITY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS 
 
 URBANA, ILLINOIS 
 1928 
 

STATE OF ILLINOIS 
 
 DEPARTMENT OF REGISTRATION AND EDUCATION 
 
 A. M. SHELTON, Director 
 
 DIVISION OF THE 
 
 STATE GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 
 
 M. M. LEIGHTON. Chief 
 
 REPORT OF INVESTIGATIONS—NO. 16 
 
 THE OIL AND GAS RESOURCES OF THE 
 AVA-CAMPBELL HILL AREA 
 
 BY 
 
 TOWNER B. ROOT 
 
 PRINTED BY AUTHORITY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS 
 
 URBANA, ILLINOIS 
 1928 
 
 ILLINOIS STATE LIBRARY 
 
STATE OF ILLINOIS 
 
 DEPARTMENT OF REGISTRATION AND EDUCATION 
 
 A. M. SHELTON, Director 
 
 DIVISION OF THE 
 
 STATE GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 
 
 M. M. LEIGHTON. Chief 
 
 Committee of the Board of Natural Resources 
 
 and Conservation 
 
 A. M. Shelton, Chairman 
 
 Director of Registration and Education 
 
 Charles M. Thompson 
 
 Representing the President of the Uni¬ 
 versity of Illinois 
 
 Epson S. Bastin 
 Geologist 
 
 Jeffersons Printing & Stationery Co. 
 Springfield, Illinois 
 1928 
 
c -J 
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 Introduction. 
 
 Previous work and acknowledgments. 
 
 Location and general description . 
 
 General structural relations . 
 
 Geology . 
 
 Stratigraphy . 
 
 Chester beds . 
 
 Pottsville beds . 
 
 Higher Pennsylvanian beds . 
 
 Structural geology ... 
 
 Sources of information . 
 
 Structure . 
 
 Faults . 
 
 Oil and gas . 
 
 Producing areas . 
 
 Lange pool . 
 
 Rickenburg pool . 
 
 Combs-Carter pool . 
 
 Carter pool . 
 
 Combs pool . 
 
 Ditch pool . 
 
 Downen pool . 
 
 Geberding pool . 
 
 Morris pool . 
 
 Smaller producing areas . 
 
 Exploration outside the producing area. 
 
 Gas and oil showings . 
 
 Dry holes . 
 
 Untested strata in the main Campbell Hill Anticline 
 
 Shallow testing of other structures. 
 
 Levan anticline . 
 
 Minor structures ... 
 
 Page 
 
 5 
 
 5 
 
 6 
 7 
 7 
 7 
 7 
 9 
 
 10 
 
 10 
 
 10 
 
 11 
 
 12 
 
 13 
 
 13 
 
 13 
 
 16 
 
 16 
 
 17 
 
 17 
 
 18 
 
 19 
 
 20 
 21 
 22 
 22 
 22 
 
 23 
 
 24 
 
 25 
 
 25 
 
 26 
 
 3 
 
ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 Figure Page 
 
 1 Index map showing the area of this report. 6 
 
 2 Cross-section along the axis of the Campbell Hill anticline (PI. Ill line 
 
 A-B) . 14 
 
 3 Cross-section through Geberding-Lange pools (PI. Ill line E-F). 18 
 
 4 Cross-section through Modglin-Ditch and Carter pools (PI. Ill line C-D) 20 
 
 Plate Pocket 
 
 I Columnar section for the Ava-Campbell Hill area. 
 
 II Structure map of the Campbell Hill area showing the elevation of the 
 Ava shale and the Herrin (No. 6) coal. 
 
 Ill Structure map of the Campbell Hill gas fields showing the elevation of 
 the Menard limestone. 
 
 4 
 
OIL AND GAS RESOURCES OF THE 
 AVA-CAMPBELL HILL AREA 
 By Towner B. Root 
 
 INTRODUCTION 
 
 The Ava-Campbell Hill district of southwestern Illinois has been 
 producing natural gas for more than ten years. Drilling during and be¬ 
 fore 1916 had shown the presence of both oil and gas, and the gas 
 from one well on the Froemling property was piped for use in the house 
 of the land owner. Nevertheless, systematic and extensive develop¬ 
 ment was not begun until the Mid Egypt Oil and Gas Company started 
 operations in the region in February, 1918. Gas was first marketed in 
 October, 1921, and since then has been produced at a rate of about 450,000 
 to 500,000 cubic feet per day. The oil production has been less im¬ 
 portant; the estimate of total production up to midsummer, 1925, was 
 from 20,000 to 25,000 barrels. The production of both gas and oil has 
 declined recently, and drilling in the last few years has developed pro¬ 
 gressively smaller wells. 
 
 PREVIOUS WORK AND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 
 
 In 1912 Mr. E. W. Shaw and Dr. T. E. Savage reported on the Mur- 
 physboro quadrangle in folio No. 185 of the United States Geological 
 Survey. In 1914 Mr. H. A. Wheeler published a map of Illinois, showing 
 an area of gas production in the Ava region, in Volume 48 of the Trans¬ 
 actions of the American Institute of Mining Engineers. In 1917 Mr. 
 Stuart St. Clair published a short report on the “Oil possibilities of the 
 Ava area” in Bulletin 35 of the Illinois State Geological Survey. In 1919 
 Dr. J. Marvin Weller mapped the geology of the Campbell Hill quad¬ 
 rangle for this Survey, but this has not been published. Grateful ac¬ 
 knowledgment is given for the material obtained from these sources. 
 
 The cooperation of the Mid Egypt Oil and Gas Company and of the 
 Willis Coal and Mining Company in making available important data is 
 gratefully acknowledged. Thanks are especially due to Dr. U. S. Grant 
 of Northwestern University, geologist for the Mid Egypt Oil and Gas 
 Company, and to Mr. A. L. Pratt, head driller, and Mr. Fred A. Krewer, 
 engineer of the Willis Coal and Mining Company. 
 
 5 
 
6 
 
 AVA-CAMPBELL HILL AREA 
 
 The field work was done during the summers of 1924 and 1925, and 
 the writer was assisted by Mr. William E. Powers, Mr. John T. McCor- 
 mack, and Mr. Joseph H. Markley, Jr. 
 
 LOCATION AND GENERAL DESCRIPTION 
 
 The Ava-Campbell Hill district is located in southwestern Illinois 
 and includes the northwest corner of Jackson County, the southwest 
 corner of Perry County, and an adjacent strip of Randolph County 
 (fig. 1). All but one of the producing wells of the district are located 
 
 Fig. 1. Index map showing the location of the area 
 discussed in this report and other oil fields in central and 
 southwestern Illinois. 
 
 in Bradley Township, (T. 7 S., R. 4 W.) in the northwest corner of 
 Jackson County. 
 
 The district is naturally divided into two contrasting physiographic 
 units: (1) a more or less rough and broken highland to the south and 
 west; (2) relatively level lowlands to the north and east. The boundary 
 between the two is indefinite except at the northeastern edge of the 
 Campbell Hill anticline where it is marked by an abrupt change in topo¬ 
 graphy. The highland is underlain by the older rocks of early Pennsyl¬ 
 vanian (Pottsville) and late Mississippian (Chester) age, principally 
 
ILLINOIS STATE GEOLOICAL SURVEY 
 
 Urbana, Illinois 
 
 Revised Copy- 
 
 Report of Investigations No. 16 
 
 "Oil and Gas Resources of the Ava-Campbell Hill Area" 
 
 In the first distribution of this report, serious 
 errors appeared in the table on page 8, in the discussion 
 of the Lange well on page 24, and in the generalized columnar 
 section shown on Plate I. Revised copies are being prepared 
 to cover all of the first distribution and will be mailed 
 within a few days. In order that the old copies may be with¬ 
 drawn from reference to avoid confusion in the future, request 
 is urgently made that upon receipt of the new copy, the old be 
 returned to this Survey under cover of the self-addressed 
 stamped envelope which will be enclosed with the new copy. 
 
 The author of the report does not share in the 
 responsibility for the errors referred to above. 
 
 M. M. Leighton, 
 
 Chief 
 
 June 1, 1928. 
 
OIL AND GAS RESOURCES 
 
 7 
 
 sandstones in this area, which resist erosion and produce the rough topo¬ 
 graphy. The lowlands are underlain by the softer beds of later Pennsyl¬ 
 vanian age (Carbondale and McLeansboro), which consist largely of 
 shale with some sandstone, limestone, and coal beds. 
 
 GENERAL STRUCTURAL RELATIONS 
 
 The principal structural feature of the region is the Campbell Hill 
 anticline, an asymmetrical fold dipping more steeply to the north, which 
 is elongated in a general southwest direction. The highland of the area 
 is directly due to the physiographic effect of the Campbell Hill anticline. 
 The areas northwest and southeast of the anticlinal ridge show somewhat 
 less markedly the physiographic effect of the underlying structural basins 
 and small subsidiary anticlines locally show up as ridges, as for example 
 at Wine Hill, and in secs. 10 and 16, T. 8 S., R. 3 W., (Levan Township) 
 Jackson County. 
 
 GEOLOGY 
 
 Stratigraphy 
 
 The columnar section (PI. 1) shows the character of the rock forma¬ 
 tions which occur in the Campbell Hill area as determined from examina¬ 
 tions of well records and outcrops. The best known of these beds are as 
 follows: (1) The Chester series of formations of the upper Mississippian, 
 (2) the Pottsville series of the lower Pennsylvanian, and (3) the Car¬ 
 bondale and McLeansboro coal-bearing beds of upper Pennsylvanian. 
 Data on the beds underlying the Chester were obtained from one well 
 only, for no others in the area have penetrated these lower strata. Below 
 the Chester the rocks are predominately limestone. (See the columnar 
 section and the table of data for a general description of these beds.) 
 
 CHESTER BEDS 
 
 The Chester beds, from which the gas and oil of the region are de¬ 
 rived, consist of sandstones, shales, and limestones, and show this se¬ 
 quence of beds repeated several times. The sandstones are typically the 
 lowest beds in each group and commonly lie on an eroded limestone 
 surface. 
 
 As shown in the columnar section, the Chester series in this region 
 consists of 16 formations. All of these may be recognized more or less 
 clearly in those well logs of the area which are detailed and accurate. 
 Production is limited to two of these formations: (a) the Cypress sand¬ 
 stone, fifth from the base, the more important producer; and (b) the Tar 
 Springs sandstone, ninth from the base, which is productive only locallv. 
 
AVA-CAMPBELL HILL AREA 
 
 
 w, 
 
 o 
 
 ■ 4—' 1 
 
 O 
 
 £ 
 
 • *— 
 
 o 
 
 in 
 
 t— 
 
 r— 
 
 CV 
 
 
 O 
 
 4—* 
 
 C/) 
 
 cv 
 » ' < 
 
 4—* 
 
 O 
 
 m 
 
 O 
 
 
 m 
 
 CJ 
 
 r -1 
 
 Cv 
 
 «n - 
 fc£ oT“ 
 
 o 
 
 in 
 — CM 
 
 J) 
 
 hs 
 
 m 
 
 lo 
 
 o 
 
 <5j 
 
 Cv 
 
 
 o 
 
 CJ 
 
 u 
 
 <u 
 
 
 
 o 
 
 CM 
 
 Cv 
 
 Cj 
 
 -M—• 
 
 VO 
 
 4 —* 
 
 Cv 
 
 T—4 
 
 Cw 
 
 VO 
 
 ct 
 
 Cv 
 
 o 
 
 £ 
 
 i 
 
 £ 
 
 1—H 
 
 1 
 
 CM 
 
 i 
 
 
 CM 
 
 
 T 3 “ 
 
 Cv 
 
 4 -» 
 
 l-H 
 
 4 -> 
 
 VO 
 
 o 
 
 ct 
 
 VO 
 
 ct 
 
 Cv 
 
 o 
 
 CO 
 
 T ~ l 
 
 in 
 
 
 CM 
 
 O 
 
 fc/: 
 
 bp 
 
 >-> 
 
 s 
 
 m 
 
 m 
 
 CM 
 
 <n 
 
 CM 
 
 -r 
 
 CM 
 
 cj 
 
 i"> 
 
 <o 
 
 CTj 
 
 .C 
 
 c 
 
 o 
 
 m 
 
 O O' 
 Cv cc 
 in 
 
 o 
 
 vo 
 
 cc 
 
 o 
 
 CM 
 
 o 
 
 CM 
 
 o 
 
 •'f 
 
 CM 
 
 m 
 
 in 
 
 CM 
 
 c 
 
 Vo 
 
 <1* 
 
 bJ 
 
 c 
 
 -Cc 
 
 *0 
 
 CS 
 
 
 G 
 
 o 
 
 l-> 
 
 C 
 
 .c 
 
 o 
 
 k. 
 
 <u 
 
 I 
 
 H 
 
 
 m 
 
 o 
 
 o 
 
 O 
 
 
 o 
 
 
 O 
 
 o 
 
 Q 
 
 <n 
 
 
 Cv 
 
 CC 
 
 
 VO 
 
 
 rvi 
 
 
 
 CM 
 
 <n 
 
 in 
 
 
 
 CC 
 
 
 
 n- 
 
 £ 
 
 
 1 —H 
 
 
 i-H 
 
 
 
 
 c \5 
 
 Ov) 
 
 c n 
 
 V. 
 
 in 
 
 O 
 
 o 
 
 o 
 
 
 o 
 
 
 o 
 
 o 
 
 <v 
 
 co 
 
 CM 
 
 CV 
 
 cc 
 
 
 VO 
 
 
 Cv 
 
 C\J 
 
 f— 1 
 
 r- ' 
 
 CM 
 
 r— ' 
 
 
 
 T“^ 
 
 
 ro 
 
 
 
 
 # 
 
 
 
 <u 
 
 
 CJ 
 
 
 
 
 
 • 
 
 
 
 c r. 
 
 
 £ 
 
 
 
 
 
 CJ 
 
 
 
 l- 
 
 
 c 
 
 
 
 
 
 c—' 
 
 
 
 ctf 
 
 
 4 —’ 
 
 
 
 
 
 o 
 
 
 
 O 
 
 
 c n 
 
 
 
 
 
 4 —* 
 
 
 
 CJ 
 
 
 CJ 
 
 
 
 
 
 C /3 , 
 
 
 
 
 
 «—• 
 
 
 
 
 
 CJ 
 
 r- 
 
 
 <u 
 
 aj 
 
 
 — 
 
 4 —* 
 
 u. 
 
 CJ 
 
 
 
 • r-* 
 
 
 r— 
 
 r-* 
 
 
 • wv 
 
 rj 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 o 
 
 
 
 o 
 
 o 
 
 4-4 
 
 
 cu 
 
 H 
 
 Cj 
 
 <L> 
 
 4 —* 
 
 CT, 
 
 a 
 
 w 
 
 
 ^S 5 
 
 CJ 
 
 rN, 
 
 w 
 
 a 
 
 
 0 
 
 +j 
 
 Cfi 
 
 ct 
 
 u 
 
 o 
 
 c n 
 
 r- 
 
 <—• 
 
 c 2 
 
 <u 
 
 cr. 
 
 »—» 
 
 Q 
 
 E 
 
 — 
 
 j-, 
 
 <U 
 
 be 
 
 a 
 
 ' O 
 
 
 o 
 
 O 
 
 
 
 <u 
 
 4 —' 
 
 (— 
 
 H 
 
 CJ 
 
 H 
 
 a> 
 
 r - 1 
 
 
 o 
 
 4 —* 
 
 CJ 
 
 CJ 
 
 .O 
 
 u 
 
 CJ 
 
 ct 
 
 
 CO 
 
 o 
 
 
 
 C /3 
 
 <U 
 
 
 C /3 
 
 Cj 
 
 Ct 
 
 r - 1 
 
 u 
 
 CJ 
 
 "c 
 
 u 
 
 CJ 
 
 - 4 -< 
 
 o 
 
 u 
 
 bc 
 
 i 
 
 CJ 
 
 r-< 
 
 4-4 
 
 r - 
 
 E 
 
 r* 
 
 fH 
 
 cn 
 
 t- 
 
 O 
 
 <u 
 
 "u 
 
 >> 
 
 J. 
 
 CJ 
 
 
 C 
 
 ffi 
 
 n 
 
 U 
 
 E 
 
 ■i 
 
 
 c 
 
 
 K. 
 
 \> 
 
 .2 
 
 - 4—1 
 
 cj 
 
 f — 1 
 
 c 
 
 u 
 
 o 
 
 (o 
 
 <u 
 
 > 
 
 > 
 
 <u 
 
 r—' 
 
 c 
 
 c 
 
 aj 
 
 c/: 
 
 O 
 
 <u 
 
 be 
 
 u 
 
 <v 
 
 n 
 
 m in m 
 
 o 
 
 <u 
 
 ttS 
 
 CTi 
 
 rt 
 
 C 
 
 be 
 
 PQ 
 
 o— 
 
 ct 
 
 f 4-4 
 
 rt a 
 
 ^ v 
 -+-* 
 
 rt C 
 
 r 
 
 U S’ 
 c 
 
 V o 
 
 be 
 
 
 O-. 
 
 CJ 
 
 c/: 
 
 rt - 
 
 • r-* 
 
 r- £ 
 
 > 5 
 
 a w 
 
OIL AXD GAS RESOURCES 
 
 9 
 
 Because of the erosional unconformity at the base of the Pennsyl¬ 
 vanian series, one or more of the upper formations of the Chester series 
 is usually missing. The three upper formations, the Clore, Degonia, and 
 Kinkaid, outcrop in the valleys along the southern and western edges 
 of the area described. 
 
 The total thickness of the Chester series is more than 1000 feet. At 
 Sugar Hill, in secs. 4, 8, and 9, T. 7 S., R. 3 W. (Ora Township), it is 
 1,268 feet thick. 
 
 POTTSVILLE BEDS 
 
 The Pottsville beds outcrop over a larger part of the area than do 
 the Chester formations, and consist largely of massive sandstone beds 
 alternating with shales, shaly sandstones, and local beds of coal. The 
 beds are not uniform in character, but range from cross-bedded and rip¬ 
 ple marked sandstones to shales which vary widely in both composition 
 and thickness. In places the shaly layers thin out and disappear so that 
 locally two or three of the sandstones may form an apparent strati¬ 
 graphic unit, as for example, at Sugar Hill. The sandstones are more 
 abundant toward the south and east, thinning out among the increas¬ 
 ingly shaly beds towards the north and west. None of the Pottsville 
 beds is productive of oil or gas in this region. 
 
 A shale bed which is fairly persistent and extensive occurs in the 
 upper part of the Pottsville and for the sake of convenience is called the 
 Ava Shale. It can be identified in many outcrops and well records. 
 Throughout the greater part of the area the Ava shale has been used as 
 the key horizon for the contour map which shows the structure of the 
 Pennsylvanian beds (PI. II). Although the Ava shale is irregular in 
 thickness and locally is missing in both outcrops and well logs, it was 
 found to be the best horizon to use over so large an area. 
 
 The maximum thickness of the Pottsville is difficult to measure 
 because the top of the Pottsville is arbitrarily taken as the base of the 
 Murphysboro (No. 2) coal, and the coal has been removed by erosion in 
 most of the places where wells have been drilled through to the Chester. 
 Also the unconformity immediately above the Chester brings the basal 
 Pottsville sandstone in many places in contact with very similar upper 
 Chester sandstones, so that from a well log it is difficult to locate the 
 contact. In certain wells in the eastern part of the area the Pottsville 
 is not less than 400 feet thick but it is thinner in most other sections, par¬ 
 ticularly at the western edge of the area where at Wine Hill its thick¬ 
 ness is estimated at 175 feet. 
 
10 
 
 AVA-CAMPBELL HILL AREA 
 
 HIGHER PENNSYLVANIAN BEDS 
 
 The higher Pennsylvanian • beds, of the age usually described as 
 Carbondale and McLeansboro, are more uniform in character than the 
 Pottsville. Shale is the dominant rock. There are some irregular sand¬ 
 stone beds, notably one slightly above the basal coal that has been named 
 the Yergennes sandstone, 1 and another immediately below the Herrin 
 (No. 6) coal at the top of the Carbondale. In addition to the shales 
 and sandstones there are several important coal seams with associated 
 thin limestone layers. None of these upper Pennsylvanian beds is pro¬ 
 ductive of oil or gas in this area. 
 
 The Carbondale immediately overlies the Pottsville and includes the 
 group of beds which occurs between the base of the Murphysboro (No. 2) 
 coal and the top of the Herrin (No. 6) coal. A third important coal, 
 the Harrisburg (No. 5), occurs a short distance below the top of the Car¬ 
 bondale group. 
 
 The thickness of the Carbondale is about 275 feet in the Gallagher 
 well, sec. 17, T. 6 S., R. 4 W., Perry County, just north of the area, where 
 the best data on the thickness were available. 
 
 The Herrin (No. 6) coal at the top of the Carbondale is about the 
 highest recognizable bed which is persistent in the structurally low por¬ 
 tions of the area. Therefore, it has been used as a key horizon for struc¬ 
 ture contours in the north parts of the area where data on the Ava shale 
 are lacking. Intervals between the two Pennsylvanian key horizons were 
 determined as follows: SW. corner sec. 4, T. 7 S., R. 4 W. (Bradley 
 Township) 314 feet; NW. p; sec. 31, T. 6 S., R. 2 W. (Duquoin Town¬ 
 ship) 335 feet; NE. Rf sec. 32, T. 6 S., R. 4 W. (Southwestern Township), 
 393 feet. Although the variation in this interval is considerable over dis¬ 
 tances of a few miles, the local variation appears to be generally slight, 
 so that the structure of the Herrin (No. 6) coal may be given the same 
 consideration as that of the Ava shale. 
 
 The greatest measured thickness of McLeansboro strata, or the 
 Pennsylvanian strata above the Herrin (No. 6) coal, in this area, is 9 7V 2 
 feet, recorded in the log of a well two miles north of Willisville. 
 
 Structural Geology 
 
 SOURCES OF INFORMATION 
 
 Outcrops in the northeastern plains part of the area are rare because 
 of a covering of glacial and alluvial debris. In the highland area to the 
 south and west outcrops are more abundant, although locally there is 
 
 i Shaw, E W„ and Savage, T. E., U. S. Geol. Survey Geol. Atlas, No. 1S5, Murphys- 
 boro-Herrm folio, p. 7, 1912. 
 
OIL AND GAS RESOURCE'S 
 
 . 11 
 
 much unconsolidated surficial material. Levels were run with a 
 planetable and a telescopic alidade to outcrops which could he used for 
 determining structural conditions, and to wells, mines, and borings for 
 which data are available. The structural data obtained from a study of 
 outcrops have been supplemented wherever possible by data from well 
 logs and mines. 
 
 As shown on the structure map, data on the Ava shale were avail¬ 
 able for the greater part of the area. In the low area to the north, test 
 borings for coal provided useful data for determining the structure. Oil 
 and gas tests are numerous along the crest of the anticline and provide 
 data both on the shallow Pennsylvanian beds and on the deeper Chester 
 beds. 
 
 STRUCTURE 
 
 The principal structural feature of the Ava-Campbell Hill district 
 is an elongate, irregular, asymmetrical anticline. The location, extent, 
 and character of the folds are shown on Plate II by structure contours 
 on Pennsylvanian beds. 
 
 From the southwest portion of the area mapped to the east line of 
 Bradley Township the axis of the Campbell Hill anticline trends about 
 N. 55° E.; there the trend changes to nearly due east. The highest part 
 of the anticline is located along the axis in secs. 12, 13, and 14, Bradley 
 Township. The crest of the fold slopes gently from this high area to the 
 southwest, and near the edge of the area mapped it rises again almost 
 to the altitude of the highest part of the anticline, as the general struc¬ 
 ture map (PI. II) shows. The plunge of the fold to the east is more 
 marked, particularly eastward from the vicinity of sec. 4, Ora Township. 
 The north and west slopes of the arch are notably steeper than the south 
 slopes. The local dips on the northwest flank are commonly 5° to 8°; 
 but the maximum sustained dip is less than 3^4°. On the southeast flank 
 local dips are usually less than 5° and the steepest sustained dip is 
 slightly over 1°. On both flanks, however, irregularities and reversals 
 of dips occur and locally higher angles of dip are found. 
 
 On the north and northwest of the Campbell Hill anticline gentle 
 dips in a northerly direction are prevalent. Eastward dipping strata 
 on the west side of the area form a basin. 
 
 West of this basin there is a local uplift of some prominence known 
 as the Wine Hill dome. Only one structure contour completely encloses 
 this dome on the map, but the dips on three sides are fairly pronounced. 
 A fault, trending nearly parallel to the strike of the beds, probably lies 
 a short distance southwest of the highest part of this uplift. 
 
 South of the Campbell Hill anticline the dips are rather irregular and 
 generally are low. 
 
12 
 
 AVA-CAMPBELL HILL AREA 
 
 The Levan anticline is located in the southeast part of the area 
 mapped, in Levan Township. This structure is elongated in a north- 
 south direction and is situated just west of a zone of pronounced east¬ 
 ward dip which occurs along most of the east side of the area. The 
 Levan anticline dips more steeply to the east, instead of to the north¬ 
 west as does the Campbell Hill anticline. The territory between the 
 Levan anticline and the larger Campbell Hill anticline to the north is 
 structurally higher than that either east or west of it, thus forming a 
 saddle. 
 
 Other less important structural features, several of which are de¬ 
 scribed below, as well as the details of their character and location, are 
 shown on the structural geology map (PI. II). 
 
 FAULTS 
 
 A southeast-northwest fault probably crosses the Wine Hill dome as 
 mentioned above. The fault is nowhere visible, but it is strongly sug¬ 
 gested by local changes in key-bed elevations and by abrupt changes in 
 stratigraphy. 
 
 A zone of faulting is clearly seen in outcrops north of the east end 
 of the main arch, especially in sec. 4, Bradley Township. One fault in 
 secs. 2 and 11, Bradley Township, which can be seen in two places, has a 
 vertical displacement of about 10 feet and two smaller faults, one on 
 either side of the large fault at the northwestern exposure, have smaller 
 displacements. The faults are roughly parallel and trend N. 40 3 W., 
 with the downthrow sides to the northeast. One of the faults of this 
 zone probably extends northwest, for it is indicated by abrupt changes in 
 key-bed elevations in the area southwest of the one-contour elevation 
 in secs. 32 and 33, Southwestern Township. The extension of the fault 
 was not seen in the field but its supposed course is shown on the map 
 by broken red line (Plate II). Where visible, the downthrow side of this 
 fault is to the southwest. Its trend is parallel to the structure contours 
 in the south central part of sec. 32. 
 
 Faults have been observed in other parts of the area. In general 
 the trend of the faults is northwest to west-northwest, nearly at right 
 angles to the axis of the arch. The known faults are closely related to 
 the topography and correspond in position to certain indentations of 
 the topographic contour lines. Similar indentations of the topographic 
 contour lines, where faults could not be directly observed, may likewise 
 be related to faults or they may represent the dying-out of faults in cross 
 folds. It seems possible that most or all of these offsets in the regularity 
 of the topographic outline of the arch along the north flank in the north¬ 
 west part of Ora Township may have been caused by undetected fault- 
 
OIL AND GAS RESOURCES 
 
 13 
 
 in g. It is probable that in the area as a whole faulting has taken place 
 to a far greater extent than can be observed from present outcrops. None 
 of the known faults has a great displacement, in so far as determinable. 
 The only one of considerable displacement is just east of the center of 
 sec. 4, Bradley Township, where the northeast side rises about 60 feet. 
 
 OIL AND GAS 
 
 Although oil and gas both are produced in the area, the gas pro¬ 
 duction has been of greater commercial importance thus far, and as yet 
 there is no expectation that oil production will increase in importance 
 to any marked degree. None of the wells obtained large production, 
 probably because of the irregularity and thinness of most of the Chester 
 sands. The discovery of larger production appears to depend on the pos¬ 
 sible presence of deeper and more favorable productive sands. This is 
 discussed on a later page. 
 
 The producing areas as shown in Plate II are on the high part of 
 the main Campbell Hill anticline. The relation of the producing areas 
 to the structure of the Menard limestone of the Chester series, as well 
 as of the oil to gas producing areas, is shown on Plate III. 
 
 Marketable oil and gas have come from only two of the Chester for¬ 
 mations in the Campbell Hill area; the Tar Springs and the Cypress 
 sandstones. The larger part of the gas production, and the oil produc¬ 
 tion in two of the three oil pools, is from the Cypress sandstone. 
 
 As the map shows (PI. Ill), the productive areas are small in extent 
 and are not all located on the highest points of the local domes along 
 the Campbell Hill anticline. The relations between the geologic condi¬ 
 tions and the accumulation of oil and gas in this area are further shown 
 by the several detailed cross-sections. 
 
 Producing Areas 
 
 LANGE POOL 
 
 The Lange pool, as is shown on Plate III, has the largest producing 
 area, and extends over the highest portion of the Chester structure shown 
 on the map. Eight of the twenty-seven producing wells in the area are 
 located in this pool. 
 
 The gas production is obtained from the lower sandstone member 
 of the Cypress, here 33 feet thick and 900 feet below the surface at the 
 crest of the structure. This bed is usually permeable and porous; there¬ 
 fore accumulation of gas on the highest part of the structure, as found 
 here, is to be expected. This relation is shown by the cross-sections 
 
14 
 
 AVA-CAMI’REF.L HTf.E AREA 
 
 600 
 
 500 
 
 400 
 
 300 
 
 200 
 
 100 
 
 Sea level 
 
 100 
 
 200 
 
 300 
 
 400 
 
 500 
 
 Illinois State Geological Survey 
 
 A 
 
 Ste. Genevieve-, 
 
 Limestone 
 
 Shale 
 
 EZD Sandstone 
 
 GIRed Rock 
 
 Fig. 2. Cross-section along axis of 
 lation to oil and gas accumulation. 
 
mu. i 1 1 ut i H i iumu.iu.iui ii n uh i hujih i - i m nilj i iuimuMi i .wmu . ii ni lll T iyi 
 
 OIL AND GAS RESOURCES 
 
 15 
 
 ?glShaly limestone 
 
 EE3 Sandy shale 
 
 Sandy limestone 
 
 gH Sandy limestone 
 with shale 
 
 B (PI. Ill) showing the structure and sand conditions and their re 
 
16 
 
 AVA-CAMPBELL HILL AREA 
 
 (figs. 2 and 3). The producing area of the Lange pool is outlined by 
 wells which found water in the lower Cypress sand. A test on this part 
 of the structure has been drilled through the Thebes sandstone to a 
 total depth of 2530 feet and found nothing below the Chester except a 
 show of oil in the top of the Thebes sand, gee rey i g g<j statement np. 8 and 24 
 
 RICKENBURG POOL 
 
 The Rickenburg pool, which is second in size, is mostly in the NE. 
 sec. 11, Bradley Township. As the structure contours show (see 
 PI. Ill) the Menard limestone here reaches an altitude of about 230 
 feet, second only to the height attained in the Lange pool. Production 
 occurs over the higher part of this local dome. The limit of the pro¬ 
 ducing area, it should be noted, does not conform closely to the struc¬ 
 ture contours, but extends somewhat farther down the west slope of the 
 dome than on the other sides. 
 
 Gas occurs in the Tar Springs sand in the highest part of the Ricken¬ 
 burg pool. Production to the east is apparently limited by a change in 
 character of the sand, which probably becomes nonpermeable and there¬ 
 fore nonproductive. Wells drilled to the west, down dip from the high¬ 
 est part of the structure, found oil in the Tar Springs sand below the 
 gas, and water in the lower part. 
 
 In the producing wells the sand is commonly reported to have a 
 thickness of from 13 to 37 feet and is thickest in the northern and east¬ 
 ern part of the pool. It is found at a depth of about 560 feet in the 
 higher part of the structure. Tests on this part of the structure have 
 been drilled into the Aux Vases or basal sandstone of the Chester series, 
 at a total depth of 1165 feet, and were dry below the Cypress formation. 
 
 A small gas pool in the Cypress formation underlies the southeast 
 part of the area of Tar Springs production in the Rickenburg pool. The 
 gas is in the lower thick Cypress sand, which is encountered at a depth 
 of 840 to 890 feet. The sand is some 40 feet thick here and thins to the 
 northward. The pool extends from the top of the Rickenburg closure 
 down its southern slope and produces from five wells. A well at the 
 northern end of the closure and another down its northeastern slope en¬ 
 counter only salt water in the sand. This peculiar location of the gas 
 on the southern slope of the structure is probably to be explained by 
 a change to finer texture of the sand to the northward. 
 
 COMBS-CARTER POOL 
 
 The Combs-Carter pool is composed of a pool in the lower thick 
 Cypress sandstone, principally underlying the Combs farm, and of a pool 
 
OIL AND GAS RESOURCES 
 
 17 
 
 in the Tar Springs sand, principally underlying the Carter farm. These 
 pools partially overlap as shown on Plate III but for convenience they 
 are described separately, the former as the Combs pool and the latter 
 as the Carter pooh The relations of sand conditions and structure to 
 production are shown in figure 2 and particularly well in figure 4. 
 
 CARTER POOL 
 
 The Carter pool, narrow and elongate in form, lies mostly in the 
 north central part of sec. 12, Bradley Township. The structure contours 
 on Plates II and III show that the pool lies along the southeast flank 
 of the arch rather than at the crest. The bed which produces the gas 
 is the thick lower sandstone of the Cypress formation. 
 
 The location of the gas pool on the flank instead of along the crest 
 of the arch is apparently due to a lack of permeability of the Cypress 
 sand near the crest. Samples from a well near the center of the NW. 
 34 sec. 12, on the crest of the structure, show the Cypress to be mostly 
 shale, containing sandstone fragments, and it may be that this is also the 
 condition along the crest immediately above the pool. This seems a 
 reasonable explanation for the trapping of the gas in the open-textured 
 part of the bed on the flank of the structure. The producing area is out¬ 
 lined to the east and south by wells that show water in the Cypress sand 
 
 (fi g- 4). 
 
 Four wells produce gas from this pool. The sand has a maximum 
 thickness of about 30 feet but in this vicinity shows great variability in 
 both character and thickness. It is reached at depths of 820 to 900 feet 
 and no wells have been drilled through it in this pool. 
 
 COMBS POOL 
 
 Along the northern edge of sec. 12, Bradley Township, to the north¬ 
 west of and partly overlapping the Carter pool, lies the smaller Combs 
 pool, which produces gas from three wells in the Tar Springs sand. 
 Plate III shows that the area of production extends from the top of a 
 small one-contour closure dome down its southeastern slope. The Tar 
 Springs sand is 30 feet thick here, but in the dry hole just southwest 
 of the pool it is recorded as only 7 feet thick and shaly in character. 
 Just south of the pool it thins to 5 feet or less. Accordingly, thinning 
 of the formation and decreased porosity in this direction are believed to 
 account for the location of the pool on the eastern slope of the dome. 
 The sand also thins to the northeast, but thickens towards the southeast 
 and west. It is reached at a depth of 515 feet. Wells have been drilled 
 only as deep as the Cypress sand which produces gas in the eastern bor- 
 
18 
 
 AVA-CAMPBELL PIILL AREA 
 
 der of the Carter pool. However, the lower sands have been tested in 
 the dry hole, in the northwest corner of sec. 12, Bradley Township (PI. 
 Ill), which went through the Yankeetown and Aux Vases sandstones of 
 the lower Chester, with no show of oil or gas in either. 
 
 700 
 
 ilMno's Stif- Ge-o ogic^’ Su'.e, 
 
 600 
 
 k- 
 
 Aux Vases 
 
 • • • « 
 
 Ste. Genevieve - 
 
 
 Fig. 3. Cross-section through the Lange-Geberding pools along line 
 E-F (PI. Ill) showing the relation of structure and sand conditions to 
 oil and gas accumulation. 
 
 DITCH POOL 
 
 The Ditch pool, which produces oil only, lies in the north central 
 part of sec. 12, Bradley Township, south and southeast of the Carter and 
 Combs pools. It is more compact in form, and on both Plates II and III 
 is shown to lie in a rather ill-defined minor structural trough which heads 
 
OIL AND GAS RESOURCES 
 
 19 
 
 at the side of the closure occupied by the Combs pool and descends and 
 broadens out towards the southeast. 
 
 Eight wells have produced oil from this pool. The oil comes from 
 a thin lenticular upper sandstone layer of the Cypress formation, which 
 here as in many other parts of the area is separated from the main sand¬ 
 stone bed below by a zone of shale and limestone layers about 25 feet 
 thick. The upper sand in the Ditch pool varies from 6 to 11 feet in thick¬ 
 ness. The lower sandstone was nonproductive where tested in this 
 pool. 
 
 The peculiar location of the pool in the structural trough on the 
 flank of the main structure is explained by the fact that in the unpro¬ 
 ductive wells, shown on Plate III, between the pool and the crest of the 
 arch, and in the wells in the Carter pool and along the crest of the arch, 
 the upper Cypress sand thins from 5 feet to 2 feet and finally lenses out. 
 This relation is plainly seen in the cross-section (fig. 4). It is absent 
 also in the wells in the Morris pool to the east and is thin or absent to 
 the southeast and south. It seems that the upper Cypress bears oil in this 
 vicinity only where it is fairly thick, as in the Ditch pool, and therefore 
 the location of the pool is primarily a matter of the development of the 
 sand rather than of structure. 
 
 The producing sand is reached at a depth of 750 to 830 feet. Wells 
 in the pool have not been drilled below the producing sand, but wells 
 nearby have been drilled through the Yankeetown to the Aux Vases 
 sand. Results were negative with two exceptions; one test a quarter 
 of a mile northeast of the pool found showings of oil in the lower Cypress 
 and the Yankeetown sands; another test an eighth of a mile southeast 
 had a showing of gas in the main lower Cypress sand. 
 
 DOWNEN POOL 
 
 The Downen pool is located in the west central part of sec. 15, Brad¬ 
 ley Township. It is elongate in form and lies along the crest of the arch 
 at the southwestern tip of its productive portion. (See Pis. II and III). 
 Four wells produce gas from the Tar Springs sand in this pool. Plate 
 III shows a slight rise of the arch at the southwestern end of the pool, 
 which seems to be the factor causing local gas accumulation. The Tar 
 Springs sand is from 19 to 46 feet thick in the producing area and is en¬ 
 countered at a depth of about 590 feet. Within the limits of the pool the 
 deepest drilling has gone only as far as the lower Cypress sand, which 
 gave a flow of gas in the two eastern wells, described as the southwestern 
 end of the Lange pool. Southwest of the pool two holes drilled through 
 to the Yankeetown sand were dry; and southeast of it two dry holes 
 
20 
 
 AVA-CAMPBELL HILL AREA 
 
 gave showings of oil in the Yankeetown sand, which was as far as they 
 were drilled. 
 
 GEBERDING POOL 
 
 The Geberding pool is small and is long and narrow in form, extend¬ 
 ing in a north-south direction a little north of the center of sec. 14, 
 
 ggi Limestone 
 E3 Sandstone 
 EE3 Shale 
 wm. Red Rock 
 
 ffjgj Shaly limestone 
 Big Sandy limestone 
 EEHi Sandy shale 
 
 Fig. 4. Cross-section through the Carter-Modglin pools along line 
 C-D (PI. Ill) showing the relation of structure and sand conditions to oil 
 and gas accumulation. 
 
 Bradley Township. The three wells in it have produced oil from the 
 thin upper Cypress sand, which is 6 to 7 feet thick and is encountered at 
 
OIL AND GAS RESOURCES 
 
 21 
 
 a depth of about 845 feet. None of these wells reached the thick lower 
 Cypress sand, but holes nearby were drilled through the Cypress and 
 the Yankeetown sands, both of which showed water, and also through 
 the Aux Vases sandstone, but found no showings of oil or gas in any 
 of these lower sands. One well drilled to the northwest of the pool, 
 between the Geberding and the Lange pools found a showing of gas, 
 with water below, in the thick lower Cypress sand. 
 
 Structurally the Geberding pool is located on the southeast flank of 
 the main anticline, and there is little in the structure shown on Plate III 
 to account for the localization of the oil other than a slight flattening of 
 the dip. However, the lack of water in the sand, its irregular, lenticular 
 nature, and the peculiar disconnected occurrence of the gas pools found 
 in it at the crest of the fold indicate that the accumulation of commercial 
 amounts of oil and gas in this sand is as dependent on local variations 
 in the texture and nature of the sand as on the structural features re¬ 
 sulting from folding. The cross-section (fig. 4) shows changes of this 
 type between Geberding No. 5 and adjacent wells. 
 
 Drilling around the Geberding pool has been unsuccessful in de¬ 
 veloping commercial production. The testing, moreover, has been thor¬ 
 ough enough so that the absence of any important producing area in the 
 Chester series has been demonstrated. Five wells drilled close to the 
 pool found shows of oil in the thin upper Cypress sand. Farther from 
 the producing wells the sand does not give even a show of oil, and in 
 only one hole, at the southeast edge of the pool, is a flow of water re¬ 
 corded. Two isolated wells about three-fourths of a mile apart found 
 flows of gas in the upper Cypress sand. These wells are indicated by 
 shading on Plate III, one in the center of the Lange pool at the highest 
 point on the dome; the other to the northwest between the Lange and 
 Rickenburg pools. 
 
 MORRIS POOL 
 
 The Morris pool, also small in size and elongate in form, is located 
 in the northeastern part of sec. 12, Bradley Township. Two gas wells 
 producing from the thick lower sand of the Cypress formation comprise 
 this pool. Neither well was drilled through the producing sand, but the 
 logs of wells drilled nearby give its thickness as from 22 to 42 feet. The 
 sand is encountered at a depth of about 810 feet. Plate III shows that 
 the pool is located on a small anticlinal nose extending southward from 
 the main anticline, and nearly closed ofif from it. A dry hole just north 
 of the pool penetrates the Yankeetown sand, in which there was a show 
 of oil with sulfurous salt water below; it also was drilled through the 
 
22 
 
 AVA-CAMPBELL HILL AREA 
 
 Aux Vases sandstone but found no show of oil or gas in that formation. 
 Two wells located on the top of the main anticline between the Morris 
 and Carter pools tested the main Cypress sand. The Cypress was pres¬ 
 ent in both wells, and in one was found carrying water and a small show¬ 
 ing of oil. 
 
 SMALLER PRODUCING AREAS 
 
 Two smaller producing areas lie near the Morris pool; one is half a 
 mile east of it along the northern edge of sec. 7, Ora Township; the 
 other is in the NE. SE. ^4 sec. 12, Bradley Township. Each of these 
 pools is limited to one producing gas well. Both pools get gas produc¬ 
 tion from the thick lower Cypress sand. The logs of wells drilled nearby 
 show that the sand is about 23 feet thick. 
 
 The eastern one of the two pools lies along the crest of the main 
 anticline at a point where the eastward pitch, of the anticlinal axis in¬ 
 creases a little. The local gas accumulation is probably related to the 
 steepening of the dip. The producing sand in this pool was found at a 
 depth of 850 feet. 
 
 The relation of the location of the other pool to structural conditions 
 is less apparent. It lies along the southern slope of the anticline, at the 
 lower edge of a terrace-like flattening, which apparently served as a trap 
 for gas migrating through the sand at that point. There the depth to 
 the gas sand is 780 feet. 
 
 In the vicinity of each of these pools deeper holes found only water 
 in testing all the sands including the Yankeetown. 
 
 Exploration Outside the Producing Area 
 
 Outside of the immediate area which has been proved productive 
 there has been extensive testing of the Chester sands, particularly on the 
 more favorable structures. Showings of oil and gas in the Tar Springs 
 and Cypress sands have been found near the producing areas and these 
 have been to some extent described in connection with these pools. 
 Other noteworthy showings of oil and gas are described below. 
 
 Gas and Oil Showings 
 
 In the NW. *4 sec. 22, Bradley Township, on the south flank of the 
 anticline, three holes encountered shows of oil in a thin upper sand of 
 the Yankeetown formation, and found salt water below it in the thick 
 main sand. A showing of oil was also found in this thin upper Yankee¬ 
 town sand in a well in the center of NW. J4 sec. Ora Township. This 
 well had a small show of gas in the thick lower Cypress sand. In another 
 
OIL AND GAS RESOURCES 
 
 23 
 
 well to the east in the SW. corner SE. 34 SW. 34 sec. 4, Ora Township, 
 (see PI. II) a light show of oil was found in the thick lower sand of the 
 Yankeetown. Both of these last wells are located on the top of the anti¬ 
 cline east of the producing area. The second well and a dry hole in the 
 NE. corner sec. 8, Ora Township, tested the small one-contour closure 
 shown on Plate II in the southwest part of sec. 4 and the northwest part 
 of sec. 8. 
 
 In a well along the SE. 34 SW. 34 sec. Bradley Township, (see PI. 
 Ill) a show of gas appeared in the upper part of the Glen Dean lime¬ 
 stone, which lies below the Tar Springs sandstone, and another in the 
 upper part of the Golconda limestone, which overlies the Cypress sand¬ 
 stone. A show of oil was reported from the lower part of the Glen Dean 
 limestone in a well near the center of sec. 11, Bradley Township. An¬ 
 other well, in the southeastern part of sec. 6, Ora Township, showed gas 
 in the lower part of the Golconda. 
 
 Dry Holes 
 
 Dry holes have been drilled to the Chester sands at various points 
 outside the producing area, as shown on Plates II and III. They have 
 tapped the sands at the more favorable points along the crest of the anti¬ 
 cline to the east of the producing area, in the southern part of secs. 4 and 
 6, the northwestern part of sec. 7, the northern part of sec. 8 and the 
 SW. 34 NW. >4 sec. 9, Ora Township. To the east of them, in the 
 NW. corner sec. 8, Vergennes Township, (see PI. II) another dry 
 hole was drilled into the base of the Chester, probably well into the 
 Aux Vases sandstone. It is located on what is apparently the eastward 
 continuation of the main Campbell Hill anticline, here reduced to a low 
 arch of little or no surface expression. 
 
 To the southwest of the producing area, holes have been drilled along 
 the more favorable parts of the anticline in the SE. 34 sec. 16 (see 
 PI. Ill), the NW. 34 SW. 34 sec. 15, and NW. corner SE. 34> SW. corner 
 NE. 34, and SW. corner SE. 34 SE. 34 sec. 20 of Bradley Township. 
 Several of these penetrate the Yankeetown sand, and the one at the crest 
 of the arch in NW. corner SE. 34 sec. 20 goes into Aux Vases sand. All 
 of them are dry, and they serve to delimit the Chester production 
 towards the southwest, for the arch flattens out in that direction beyond 
 them. 
 
 Within this area only two wells have been drilled into the pro¬ 
 ductive sand horizons south of the main anticline and both of these are 
 dry holes. One of them tested the highest part of the Levan anticline in 
 NE. 34 SW. 34 sec. 10, Levan Township (see PI. II). The other is located 
 in the SW. corner NW. 34 NW. 34 sec. 24, Bradley Township, at the 
 
24 
 
 AVA-CAMPBELL HILL AREA 
 
 southeastern border of the Campbell Hill anticline, where the structural 
 slope flattens out into the saddle mentioned on page 12. Both holes were 
 drilled through the base of the Chester beds and into the Ste. Genevieve 
 limestone below. 
 
 North of the Campbell Hill anticline two wells have been drilled into 
 the Cypress formation and both were dry holes. One of these lies in the 
 NE. 34 NE. 34 sec. 32, Southwestern Township, on the lower north flank 
 of the anticline. The other is nearly three miles to the north, in sec. 17 
 of Southwestern Township, and is in an area which is structurally nearly 
 flat. 
 
 Other dry holes are shown on Plates II and III, but most of 
 them test only the Pennsylvanian or upper Chester rocks and have not 
 penetrated the oil- and gas-bearing beds of the lower Chester. 
 
 UNTESTED STRATA IN THE MAIN CAMPBELL 
 
 HILL ANTICLINE 2 
 
 Recent development in the more favorable local domes along the 
 highest part of the Campbell Hill anticline has resulted in thorough test¬ 
 ing of the more shallow zones. Each of the suitable localities has been 
 tested to the Yankeetown sand, and a well was drilled to test lower for¬ 
 mations in the Lange pool in the NW. 34 SE. 34 NE. Ya sec. 15, Bradley 
 Township, which reached a total depth of 25,30 feet, the greatest depth 
 attained by any well in the area or nearby. 
 
 This deep well passed through the recognized Chester and Lower 
 Mississippian series and entered a thick shale sequence at 2020 feet, the 
 correlation of which is uncertain. This shale occupies the normal place 
 in the stratigraphic section of the Kinderhook-Chattanooga formations, 
 but it more closely resembles the Maquoketa shale in lithology. If this 
 is the Maquoketa shale, the Silurian and Devonian formations have been 
 removed by pre-Mississippian erosion in this area, as they were in Mon¬ 
 roe County on the Waterloo and Valmeyer anticlines. Immediately be¬ 
 neath the shale, at a depth of 2410 feet, the drill entered a very cherty 
 limestone, in which the well ended at a depth of 2530 feet. The very 
 cherty character of this limestone is typical of the Devonian limestone 
 underlying the Chattanooga shale, whereas the Kimmswick limestone 
 beneath the Maquoketa formation has very little chert. It seems likely, 
 therefore, that the normal stratigraphic sequence prevails here. 
 
 2 The study of the Lange well was made by other members of the Survey staff who 
 also collaborated in preparing the statement regarding the testing of deeper strata in 
 the main Campbell Hill anticline. The author of this report did not have opportunity 
 to study the well cutting samples from the well or to compile the generalized columnar 
 section below the Chester series shown on Plate I.—Editoi"’s note. 
 
OIL AND GAS RESOURCES 
 
 25 
 
 Assuming this to be true, the possibilities of the Kimmswick-Plattin 
 (“Trenton”) limestone have not been determined. The top of the Kimms- 
 wick probably lies about 1000 feet beneath the base of the Kinderhook- 
 Chattanooga shale. 
 
 If this shale is the Maquoketa, the St. Peter sandstone would be 
 reached at a depth of some 600 feet beneath this shale. The St. Peter 
 sandstone is of interest to oil men at the present time for it is similar in 
 character to and is the approximate stratigraphic equivalent of the Wil¬ 
 cox sand of Oklahoma. Further, the generally open texture of this sand¬ 
 stone gives promise of good possibility of the proper conditions of per¬ 
 meability for satisfactory oil or gas production. The overlying lime¬ 
 stone may be assumed to have contained abundant source material for 
 forming petroleum and gas. In view of the above considerations it is 
 believed that drilling to test the St. Peter sandstone is desirable. 
 
 If the structure is to be tested thoroughly, two deep wells will 
 be necessary. One of these should be located in the NW. 34 NW. 34 
 sec. 14, Bradley Township, near or within the highest structure contour 
 as shown on Plate III, and the other either in the structurally high area 
 of the Rickenburg pool in the NE. 34 sec. H (see PI. Ill) or in the struc¬ 
 turally high area in the NE. 34 NW. 34 sec. 12, Bradley Township. 
 Because of the faulting to the west of this second location, which should 
 serve to interrupt the circulation of fluids through any porous rock bed, 
 it seems possible that the latter location is to be preferred to the one in 
 sec. 11. 
 
 SHALLOW TESTING OL OTHER STRUCTURES 
 
 Levan Anticline 
 
 The Levan anticline is the most pronounced structure outside of 
 the strongly folded Campbell Hill anticline. As Plate II shows, the 
 highest point of this structure is located in sec. 10, Levan Township, and 
 is marked by a two-contour closure. This structure has been tested 
 through the Chester by only one well which found no showings of oil 
 or gas. According to the best available information this well does not 
 condemn the Levan anticline any more than one of the dry holes drilled 
 on the Campbell Hill anticline condemns that structure, for the presence 
 of properly permeable sand bodies, as well as favorable structural feat¬ 
 ures, is necessary for oil and gas production. The records available do 
 not show whether this well on the top of the Levan anticline found any 
 water in either the Tar Springs or Cypress sands, although it is known 
 that in a well drilled in sec. 16 in which the Tar Springs sand was only 
 10 feet lower structurally, salt water was found. The Cypress sand, 
 however, was not reported to have contained water in this latter well. 
 
26 
 
 AVA-CAMPBELL HILL AREA 
 
 In case the dry hole in sec. 10 failed to find water in either the Tar 
 Springs or Cypress sands, then only the location and not the structure 
 is condemned. 
 
 Minor Structures 
 
 Other structures possibly favorable for oil and gas accumulation 
 which might be worth testing through the Chester will be described, in 
 so far as possible in their order of merit, although there is little choice 
 between them. None of them is strongly folded, and in even the most 
 favorable the uncertainty of getting production is high because of the 
 very irregular and unpredictable occurrence of the oil and gas in the 
 Chester beds. Consequently a structure should not be condemned on 
 the basis of only one dry hole. 
 
 On the eastern extension of the main anticline there is a spot in the 
 NW. %. sec. 11, Ora Township, where a test might be made. The anticline 
 is narrow here, and the topography indicates a local bulge on it which the 
 structural data were not complete enough to show. The nearest oil tests 
 are two wells a mile and a half to the west-northwest along the southern 
 boundary of sec. 4. Both of these go through the base of the Chester; 
 one found only a small show of oil in the lower Yankeetown, the other 
 was dry. A dry hole is also located about three miles to the east in the 
 northwest corner of sec. 8, Vergennes Township, referred to before as 
 having gone into the Aux Vases sandstone with negative results. A 
 single additional hole should suffice to test the possibilities of the struc¬ 
 ture, and it should be located on the crest of the ridge at or near its 
 highest point, in the NE. ^4 NW. sec. H- The Tar Springs sand 
 should be encountered at a depth of from 700 to 750 feet; the Cypress 
 at from 880 to 930 feet; and the Yankeetown at from 1140 to 1190 feet. 
 
 The area which appears to have the next best possibilities for testing 
 is the Wine Hill dome in sec. 5 of Wine Hill Township. This structure 
 was described on page 11 as a one-contour dome, and reference was 
 made to the fault along its southwest flank. The possibility of a detri¬ 
 mental effect on possible oil and gas accumulation as a result of this 
 faulting seems negligible, for in the Rickenburg, Combs, and Carter 
 pools nearby, faulting apparently has had little effect either in the ac¬ 
 cumulation or dispersion of the oil and gas. No deep wells are known 
 near the Wine Hill structure except one about four miles northwest, in 
 sec. 23 of Bremen Township, in which some gas was encountered but 
 was drowned out by salt water. The horizon which showed the gas has 
 not been determined but it is known that it is in the Chester series. A 
 single test well on the Wine Hill dome might be enough to test it and 
 should be located on the highest part of the hill, either in the area shown 
 on the topographic map as inclosed by the 620-foot contour or slightly 
 
OIL Ai\ T D GAS RESOURCES 
 
 27 
 
 north of it. The Tar Springs sand should be encountered at a depth of 
 about 400 feet; the Cypress sand at about 650 feet; and the Yankeetown 
 sand at about 750 feet. 
 
 Another place for a test is shown on Plate III as a broad one- 
 contour closure in the E. ^ sec. 32 and the W. ^4 sec. 33, Southwestern 
 Township. The data are not full enough to recommend an exact loca¬ 
 tion for drilling but a hole about in the middle of the eastern boundary 
 of sec. 32 would test the structure. There are no deep drill-holes nearer 
 than those along the Campbell Hill anticline three miles southeast. The 
 Tar Springs sand should be entered at a depth of about 575 feet; the 
 Cypress at about 850 feet; and the Yankeetown at about 975 feet. 
 
 Near the SW. corner sec. 34, Bradley Township* there is another 
 location which might repay a test. It is a two-contour closure of small 
 area, flanked on the west by a rather steep syncline. No holes which 
 encounter the productive sands are nearer than those along the main 
 anticline to the north, in secs. 20 and 22, Bradley Township. The struc¬ 
 ture could be tested by a single well located about 700 feet east and 200 
 feet north of the SW. corner sec. 34. The Tar Springs sand should be 
 encountered at a depth of about 450 feet; the Cypress at about 750 feet; 
 and the Yankeetown at about 875 feet. 
 
 In secs. 33 and 34 of Ora Township the flattened northern end of 
 the Levan anticline offers another site for testing the Chester sands. 
 This is the least favorable of all the locations shown on Plate II, 
 for there is no closure, and the crest of the anticline is broad and 
 ill-defined. The test hole should be located near the line between secs. 
 33 and 34, about three-eighths of a mile north of their southern boundary. 
 The nearest well which penetrates the Chester sands is the one in sec. 
 10 which was referred to before as a dry hole. The Tar Springs sand 
 should be entered at a depth of about 700 feet; the Cypress at about 1025 
 feet; and the Yankeetown at about 1175 feet. 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 J200 • 
 
 ItfQO 
 
 1300 
 
 1300 
 
 I TOO 
 
 JOCO 
 
 900 
 
 300 r 
 
 \00 
 
 'xr: 
 
 —• »r«- 
 
 I ; : 
 
 xTvX"] 
 
 
 -TL'XXX 
 
 {>• ■ VJ 
 
 x. r : jo 
 x.x 
 
 
 * • -• - - 
 
 : I 
 
 -- - 1 . 
 
 X ; T- :l 
 
 *. .*-4 
 
 1C 
 
 x--J 
 
 ::ir± j~1 
 
 
 Et 7 E 11 
 
 ::r :x: 
 ... 
 
 X J XI 
 
 - -v— • 1 — 
 
 ■l- ■■ — 
 
 .. 
 
 • » * ' ‘ Vi 
 
 ■ ■ vnrv . ■ 
 
 > 1 > » * «i 
 
 xxixx 
 
 rt 
 
 ■l.VX/j 
 » • ♦ * <* 
 
 fa* 4 a » 
 
 ■ : :-i 
 ,.x: T x.x 
 
 Zt “ X' 
 
 tx Vx* 4 
 
 ■ •‘•r 
 
 • » « 1 • 
 
 • ; • » * * 
 • • ‘ ♦ ♦ 
 
 ' C».ocjc 
 
 i*uQ'i(o;je 
 k G^bi.eu* 
 
 ; 
 
 I 
 
 ! 
 
 {!j .o.-;;-‘.nro 
 
 afjyqa(o»«i 
 
 • CP a i>- a 
 
 ■ li j - .•;.!<? 
 
 .1,571. : •: i'J.j < ' : 
 
 r: > Vf J « V 
 
 (• o,:o»ic» 
 
 J 
 
 i 
 
 :;y :/,}.4fOt, - 
 
 ■ ‘.to:; 
 
 :• ' ■*• 
 
 J 
 
 iifXf 7.-, 'UJ'y 
 - j;)O.X;rur 
 
 JtU/O^OU© 
 
 n 
 
 *r? 
 
 r 
 
 a-v 
 
 <T> 
 f- 
 
Illinois State Geological Survey 
 
 Report of Investigations No. 16, Plate I 
 
 Formation Series System 
 
 
 ICO 
 
 :: 
 
 2M 
 
 400 
 
 700 
 
 800 
 
 900 
 
 1000 
 
 1100 
 
 1200 
 
 1300 
 
 1400 
 
 1500 
 
 1600 
 
 1800 
 
 1900 
 
 2000 
 
 2100 
 
 2700 
 
 
 No. 6 coal 
 
 No. 6 cool 
 
 McLeanaboro 
 
 formation 
 
 Carbondale 
 
 formation 
 
 
 
 PottsvtDe 
 
 formation 
 
 Klnkald 
 
 limestone 
 
 Degonla 
 
 sandstone 
 
 Clore 
 
 formation 
 
 Palestine 
 
 sandstone 
 
 Menard 
 
 limestone 
 
 Vienna 
 
 9hale 
 
 Tar Spring* 
 ■nndstone 
 
 Glen Dean 
 llmeetone 
 
 Hardlnsburg 
 
 sandstone 
 
 Golconda 
 
 limestone 
 
 Cyprees 
 
 sandstone 
 
 Paint Creek 
 formntlon 
 
 Yankee town 
 sandstone 
 
 Renault 
 
 formation 
 
 Aui Vases 
 sandstone 
 
 Ste. Genevieve 
 llmeetone 
 
 St Louie 
 llmostono 
 
 Spergen 
 
 llmeetone 
 
 Warsaw-Keokuk 
 
 llmeetone 
 
 Kiadsrbook- 
 
 OiftiTvooca shale 
 iRKBSketaT) 
 
 Deroeiaa 
 Luaeetooe 
 l Klrr-gjwlck 7) 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 J 
 
 ' 5 . 
 
 O. 
 
 S 
 
 I 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 3100 
 
 Generalized columnar section for the Ava-Campbell Hill area 
 
 I-owcr Minsisnlppian 
 

 PLATE II 
 
 Y 1V*T>2 ITA/ir' rioh jjI 
 
 
 / / 
 
 P —-j—*——' y / 
 
 \ V 
 
 \ : 
 
 Vi V 
 
Illinois State Geological Survey 
 
 Report of Investigations No. 16, Plate II 
 
 31 
 
 1 _ 
 
 General map of the Ava-Campbell Hill area with structure contours showing the elevation of the Ava shale in black and the Herrin (No. 6) 
 coal in red. The producing areas, areas recommended for prospecting, a nd oil tests drilled outside the producing areas are shown by appropriate 
 symbols. 
 
 t 
 
 Producing (iron* 
 
 Observed fault 
 
 Inferred fault 
 
 Contour "bowing elevation 
 of tho Ava nhnla 
 
 Contour showing approximate 
 olovatlon of tho Ava shale 
 
 Dry hole, show of oil In 
 Yankeetown sandstone 
 
 Dry hole, tested Into: 
 
 Yunkootown sandstone 
 
 Cypress sandstone 
 
 Tar Springs sandstone 
 
 Areas recommended for 
 drilling 
 
 Observed fault 
 
 Inferred fault 
 
 Contour showing elevation 
 of Herrin (No. 6) coal 
 
 Contour showing approximate 
 elevation of Herrin 
 (No. 0) coal 
 
Illinois State Geological Survey 
 
 Report of Investigations No. 16, Plate III 
 
 Show of gas—well abandoned 
 
 Oil-producing area 
 
 Show of oil—well abandoned 
 
 Show of oil in Yankeetown 
 sandstone 
 
 Show of gas in other Chester 
 formations 
 
 Dry hole tested into: 
 
 ; Yankeetown 
 sandstone 
 
 2 Cypress sandstone 
 
 3 Tar Springs 
 
 sandstone 
 
 Fault—definite 
 Fault—doubtful 
 Contour—definite 
 - Contour—doubtful 
 
 R. 4 W. 
 
 Structure map of the Ava-Campbell Hill gas fields with contours showing the elevation of the Menard limestone. Locations of producing areas 
 and abandoned wells are also shown. 
 
■V'Vjr■■j; v . - . 
 
 jr~ (-r» - . 
 
 . V 
 
 ' 
 
 - 
 
 ' 
 
 
 » 
 
 ■ 
 
 ' 
 
 ■ 
 
 \ o *■. 
 
 : 
 
 
 feBrVL -, 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 H* 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 I 
 
 - 
 
 ► j - . . • - • 
 
 ■ 
 
 ■ 
 
 -■ • 
 
 l> 5 - ; 
 
 / 
 
 : - ' r v ) 
 
 ■ 
 
 ■ , . * / 
 
.