Caldi outu;
n
Press Bulletin Series
For the Oil and Gas Industry
STATE OF ILLINOIS
DEPARTMENT OF REGISTRATION AND EDUCATION
A. M. SHELTON, Director
DIVISION OF THE
STATE GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
M. M. LEIGHTON. Chief. Urhana
No. 16
ILLINOIS PETROLEUM
June 30,1928
Editor's Note: No regular schedule will be followed in future issues of "Illi-
nois Petroleum" but they will appear whenever new information in geology,
petroleum engineering, or development in drilling and in oil recovery is secured
that will be of interest to the oil and gas industry.
CONTENTS
PAGE
Recent development on the Ayers anticline 1
Recent drilling northwest of St. Francisville, Lawrence County, Illinois 10
RECENT DEVELOPMENT ON THE AYERS ANTICLINE
By Alfred H. Bell
Introduction
Interest in the Ayers area (fig. 1 ) has been recently revived by the find-
ing of a show of oil during the deepening of one of the wells in the gas field,
namely the William Sharp well No. 1 in sec. 28, T. 6 N., R. 3 W. (fig. 4,
Fig. 1. Index map showing the location of the two areas described in this
report, namely the Ayers area (A), and the area northwest of St. Francis-
ville (B). Solid black shows locations of other oil and gas fields.
T„. ' ?latcr1?!-ey'. R; S-' OU and gas in Bond, Macoupin, and Montgomery counties,
Illinois: Illinois State Geol. Survey Bull. 28, p. 43, 1914.
Tii- B.ell> A- H.i Oil possibilities of the Ayers anticline: Illinois State Geol. Survey
Illinois Petroleum No. 5, p. 15, 1926.
ILLINOIS GEOLOGCAL
SURVEY LIBRARY
\9flU
V <-'
ILLINOIS PETROLEUM
map No. 8). In two former publications1 the Survey has recommended the
Ayers anticline as worthy of further testing for oil. The present paper gives
the new data from the recent drilling and summarizes what is known of the
geological conditions in the area.
%o<M
i i
<^ »
>l
Glacial Drift
and Aliuviur.
H
TTvH FireC'a"
No detailed record
Shale and sandy
Shale with Inter-
bedded Lime-
stone and
Sandstone
1 100—1 Illinois State Geological Survey
Fig. 2. Generalized columnar section for the
Ayers area.
iWffiffllHSPou*^
SURVEY
3 3051 00005 1288
DEVELOPMENT ON THE AYERS ANTICLINE
Stratigraphy
A generalized columnar section for the area, down to the Meramec
series of the Mississippian system (the "Mississippi lime" of the drillers),
is given in figure 2. The surface material consists of unconsolidated de-
posits of Pleistocene age, from 100 to 150 feet or more in thickness, chiefly
glacial till and stream deposits. These are underlain by a series of shales
and sandy shales with interbedded sandstone, limestone, and coal of Pennsyl-
vanian age. The contact between Pennsylvanian strata and the underlying
Chester series of the Mississippian system is not recognizable in the logs of
any of the wells in the area, and accordingly estimates of thickness of Penn-
sylvanian and Chester strata are based on an arbitrarily assumed position
for the contact between them. About 550 feet thickness of strata has been
assigned to the Pennsylvanian. Herrin (No. 6) coal which occurs at a
depth of 370 feet in Hellinger No. 2 well marks the upper limit of the Car-
bondale formation. The McLeansboro formation lies above Herrin (No. 6)
coal and has a thickness of about 250 feet. The combined thickness of the
Table 1. — Estimate of depths to possible oil and gas horizons on Ayers Anticline'
Depth
Feet
Horizons
Remarks
400
1. Pennsylvanian sands below Her-
rin (No. 6) coal
Produce oil at Junction City and
Wamac; oil and gas at Carlin-
ville; and gas at Staunton.
800
2. Chester
Oil at Frogtown, Carlyle, Sandoval
and Centralia; gas in Bond Coun-
ty, (1) sec. 28, T. 6 N., R. 3 W.,
and (2) Lindley pool, sec. 22, T.
5 N., R. 3 W.
900
3. Ste. Genevieve (upper part of
"Mississippi lime"); corre-
lated with "McClosky sand"
Oil in Lawrence County.
2000
4. Devonian or Silurian
Showings of oil in wells in Old
Ripley Township (south of Ayers
anticline).
5. Silurian: "Niagara lime" and
Hoing sand
Gas in Pike County (Pittsfield-
Hadley anticline) and oil at Col-
mar.
2650
6. Ordovician: Kimmswick-Plattin
limestone ("Trenton lime-
stone")
Oil at Waterloo.
-Bell, A. H., op. cit., p. 16.
4 ILLINOIS PETROLEUM
Carbondale and Pottsville formations is about 300 feet. As No. 2 coal,
which marks the base of the Carbondale, is not recorded in the logs, these
formations have not been separated.
The Chester series consists of about 220 feet of interbedded shale,
sandstone, and limestone, and is characterized by a number of beds of "red
rock" or red shale. Underlying the Chester is a comparatively great thick-
ness of limestone, probably either the St. Genevieve or St. Louis limestone,
or both, of the Meramec series. The Sapp well penetrated 110 feet of lime-
stone but the deeper formations are not penetrated in this or the nearby
surrounding territory and consequently their thickness and lithologic charac-
ter are not well known. Estimates of the depth to each possible producing
horizon are given in table 1.
Structure
The structure of the area is illustrated by two contour maps, one on
Herrin (No. 6) coal, figure 3, and the other on the lower gas sand, figure 4.
O 0..™*cl
»l •Sa>cr«ta,n9.
<>o.
Fig. 3. Structure map of Ayers anticline, Bond County. Key horizon Herrin
(No. 6) coal. (Illinois State Geological Survey.)
DEVELOPMENT ON THE A.YEES ANTICLINE
The former is reprinted from Illinois Petroleum No. 5. As the new drilling"
has not given additional information on the structure of the Pennsylvanian
beds, this map still represents our most up-to-date interpretation. The
structure map of the gas sand (fig. 4) is here presented for the first time.
It shows a narrow, elongated anticline with axis trending east-west and
R 3 w
O
Djmond Drill CoalTest
o
Dry Hole
Contours on Lower Gas Sand
Abandoned Gas. Well
Fig. 4. Structure map of part of the area shown in figure 3. The key horizon
is a sand in the lower part of the Chester series. Contour interval, 10 feet.
Datum plane, sea-level.
ILLINOIS PETROLEUM
Table 2. — Well data
Surface
Upper sand
Map
No.
Sec.
Company
Farm and No.
elevation
above
sea-level
Depth
Feet
Alti-
tude
Feet
Thick-
ness
Feet
1
21
Ohio
Sapp 1
542
0
2
28
Bond Co. Gas
Wharton
546
0
3
28
Bond Co. Gas
Alderman
518
0
4
28
Ohio
Alderman
518
0
5
28
Bond Co. Gas
Stowe
551
0
6
28
Bond Co. Gas
Hellinger 1
553
894
—341
6
7
28
Bond Co. Gas
Hellinger 2
528
867
—339
9
8
28
Bond Co. Gas
Sharp 1
551
907
—356
10
9
28
Bond Co. Gas
Warlick 1
532
0
10
21
Ohio
F. V. Cary
apparently coinciding with the axis of the anticline shown in figure 3. The
dips shown in figure 4 are, however, considerably steeper than are those of
the coal ( fig. 3 ) in the surrounding territory. In this respect structural con-
ditions are similar to those in the Lindley gas field five and a half miles south.
The data on which the structure map of the gas sand was based are given
in table 2.
Development
ohio oil company
Three test wells were drilled by the Ohio Oil Company in the area in
1917: (1) The H. E. Sapp well in the SE. corner NW. V4 NE. J4 sec. 21,
T. 6 N., R. 3 W. (fig. 4, map No. 1) ; (2) the Alderman well in the NW. j4
NE. yA sec. 28 (map No. 4), and; (3) the F. V. Cary well in the NE. ]/A
SE. Y\ sec. 21 (map No. 10). The first of these had a show of oil from
952 to 956 feet in a sand which may be the producing sand of the gas field;
the second had gas in sand from 901 to 911 feet and water from 911 to 936
feet ; the third had no showing of oil or gas. All three of the wells pene-
trated about 100 feet of "Mississippi lime."
DEVELOPMENT ON THE AYKRS ANTICLINE
of the Ayers yas field
Lower sand
Total
depth
Feet
Depth
Alti-
tude
Feet
Thickness drilled
Remarks
Feet
Feet
952
—410
4
1100
Show of live oil
926
—380
2
926
Gas well, abandoned
898
—380
6
1060
Gas well, abandoned
901
—383
10 gas-bearing; 25 wa-
ter-bearing
1150
Gas found but not used; drilled
to "Mississippi lime"
934
—383
13 show gas; 4 water-
bearing
951
900
Gas show — dry hole
Gas producer
Gas producer; formerly from up-
890
—362
5 gas
895
per sand, now from lower sand
944
—393
3 oil-bearing; 20 wa-
ter-bearing
1004
Gas producer from upper sand;
oil show in lower sand; aban-
doned
913
—381
10 show gas; 7 water-
bearing
930
Gas show — dry hole
1
?
1090
Dry
BOND COUNTY GAS COMPANY
Several years later the Bond County Gas Company began operations in
the territory. Their first well was the Wharton, located in the NE. l/x
NE. 54 sec. 28 (fig. -i, map No. 2). Gas at a pressure of 3.">() pounds per
square inch was found in a sand from 926 to 928 feet. Later several more
gas wells were drilled in the adjacent territory to the west. During 1923
and 1924 six gas wells and one dry hole, the Stowe No. 1 (map No. 5),
were drilled. The gas produced was used to supply the town of Greenville.
The encroachment of water in the gas sand gave trouble, however, and the
natural gas had to be supplemented by manufactured gas. It is reported that
the Wharton and Alderman wells still had gas pressures of approximately
150 pounds per square inch at the time they were abandoned.
In 1927 and 1928 a program of cleaning out and deepening some of the
wells was undertaken by the Bond County Gas Company. As a result, a
supply of gas adequate for the town of Greenville is now being obtained from
two wells, Hellinger Nos. 1 and 2 (fig. 4, map Nos. 6 and 7). These two
wells and the Sharp No. 1 (map No. 8) originally produced gas from an
upper sand, a few feet higher in the stratigraphic section than the producing
sand of the Wharton and Alderman wells. This upper sand is not reported
ILLINOIS J'KTROLEUM
present in the logs of any of the wells other than the three mentioned above,
and on account of its restricted lateral occurrence it has been called a stray-
sand. Hellinger No. 1 was not deepened but was cleaned out in the upper
sand and it is now producing gas at a pressure of 150 pounds per square
inch. Hellinger No. 2 was deepened and gas at a pressure of 350 pounds
per square inch was found in the lower sand. In deepening the Sharp well
the interval from the upper to the lower sand was found to be 37 feet as
compared with 23 feet in Hellinger No. 2 well. This sand was drilled in
on April 20, 1928, from 944 to 951 feet, and the well filled up about two-
thirds full of fluid, mainly brackish water. It was bailed down a number
of times in the next few days and several gallons of oil settled out. The oil
has a gravity of 32.5 degrees Baume. The well was drilled to 1004 feet
and the project of drilling to the "Mississippi lime" had to be abandoned
because the hole was crooked.
One dry hole was drilled in 1927-28, the P. L. Warlick No. 1 (fig. 4,
map No. 9). A show of gas was found in sand from 913 to 923 feet, and
salt water in sand from 923 to 930 feet. The well was plugged and aban-
doned at this depth.
Producing Sands
The gas in the Ayers gas field comes from two sands in the Chester
series. The lower sand is present in all of the wells in the area and lies 66
feet above the top of the "Mississippi lime" in the Bond County Gas Com-
pany's Alderman well (fig. 4, map No. 3). The upper sand, as mentioned
above, was found in only three of the wells in the area.
Samples of the producing sand from most of the Bond County Gas
Company's wells were studied. It is a fine to very fine-grained, well-bedded
sand, light greenish-gray in color, sometimes brown. It is partly calcareous
and partly noncalcareous, but the calcite content is not high. Some clayey
material is present and pyrite, limonite, mica, and glauconite occur as acces-
sory minerals. Porosity determinations were not attempted on account of
the small size of the pieces available, and variations in porosity were not
detected by examination under the binocular microscope. The fact that
there are considerable differences in the gas pressures in the same sand in
nearby wells shows that there are variations in the permeability of the sand.
Parts of it appear to be virtually sealed off from other parts by impervious
streaks. No differences in lithologic character were noted between the upper
and lower sands.
Recommendations
4 nere still remains a considerable untested area on the Ayers anticline.
Formerly the presence of oil on or near the top of the structure had not been
demonstrated; the nearest showing of oil was that found in the Sapp well
DEVELOPMENT OX THE AYERS ANTICLINE V
in sec. 21. T. 6 N., R. 3 W. (fig. 4, map No. 1), down on the north flank
of the anticline. Moreover, the gas obtained from the field was apparently
"drv" gas for no condensation of gasoline was found in the pipe line in cold
weather. The recent finding of the show of oil in the Sharp well suggests
the possibility that oil may exist in commercial quantities in the same sand
somewhere else on the anticline. As no tests deeper than the Ste. Genevieve
or St. Louis limestone have been drilled on the structure the possible deeper
producing beds remain untested.
The structure, especially the west part in sees. 20 and 19, T. 6 N., R. 3
\\\, and sec. 24, T. 6 N.f R. 4 W., is known only in general outline and the
details are largely unknown. It is believed that the most efficient way in
which the anticline may be thoroughly tested is first to determine structure in
greater detail by means of a number of shallow tests to Herrin (No. 6) coal
and then to make the location for one or more deep tests on the basis of the
more complete knowledge of structure so obtained. The advantage of such
procedure over the more ordinary one of locating deep tests without know-
ledge of structural details has been well demonstrated in the mid-continent
oil fields but so far the structure drilling plan has not been adopted to any
extent by Illinois oil operators. A discussion of the question and a tabular
comparison of costs are given in a former publication.3 In view of the suc-
cess of structure testing by shallow drilling in bringing in new pools and
extending old ones in the mid-continent field, it is believed that its possibili-
ties for success in Illinois would justify its adoption.
'•'■ Moulton, Gail F., Proper testing for oil structures in Illinois and some areas de-
serving such testing: Illinois State Geol. Survey Report of Investigations No. 6,
pp, 6-9, 1925.
10 ILLINOIS PETROLECM
RECENT DRILLING NORTHWEST OF ST. FRANCISVILLE,
LAWRENCE COUNTY, ILLINOIS
By Alfred H. Bell
General Statement
The success of recent drilling in sec. 7, T. 2 N., R. 11 W., suggests
that some of the territory in sees. 7 and 8, formerly considered condemned,
in reality has good possibilities of commercial oil production. This area is
located in southeastern Lawrence County southwest of the Murphy pool
and northwest of St. Francisville. It was the scene of great drilling activity
after the discovery, on April 6, 1914, of a 3100 barrel well on the M. J.
Murphy farm in sec. 5, T. 2 N., R. 11 W. at a depth of 183.") feet in the
McClosky sand. On account of the large initial production of several of
the wells in the Murphy pool, and the expectation of similar large produc-
tion in the adjacent territory to the south and southwest, a number of wells
in sees. 7 and 8 were abandoned, although, according to current reports, most
of them had enough oil in the Kirkwood sand to give production on a com-
mercial scale. The index map (fig. 1, p. 1) shows the location of the
area (B) described in this report and its relation to adjacent oil and gas
fields.
The Survey published geological reports on the Lawrence County oil
fields in 19131 and 1 !)!(>.- The present paper gives a summary of the data
on the old and new drilling in an area of five sections in the northwest part
of Dcnnioon Township ( T. 2 N., R. 1 1 W.-K Lawrence County, and dis-
cusses the geological conditions in their bearing on prospects for new pro-
duction.
Structure
The structure of the area is illustrated in figure 5 by contours, with a
20-foot interval, showing the elevation of the top of the Kirkwood sand. In
the north part of sees. 7 and 8 the contours are taken from plate VIII,
Bulletin 33, but have been renumbered with reference to sea-level instead
of to a datum plane 1500 feet below sea-level. The data on which the map
is based are given in table 3. On account of the lack of detailed logs of any
of the wells except the three in the north part of sec. 18 the correlation of
the Kirkwood sand is in some places uncertain. All of the datum points
except two were based on sand records in which the sands were identified
by the drillers. Over most of the area the map (fig. 5) shows a general
1 Blatchley, R. S., Oil fields of Crawford and Lawrence counties: Illinois State
Geol. Survey Bull. 22, 1913.
2 Rich, J. L., Oil and gas in the Vincennes quadrangle: Illinois State Geol. Sur-
vey Bull. 33, pp. 147-180, 1916.
RECENT DRILLING NORTHWEST OF ST. FRANCISVILLE
11
dip to the south, which is in accordance with the known regional dip in the
surrounding area. The features of special interest are: (1) an anticlinal
nose in the S. l/2 NE. Y\ sec. 7 and adjacent part of sec. 8; and (2) a flat
or terrace in the SW. *4 sec. 7 and N. Yz sec. 18.
R 11 w
<>^7a^^o
is°o^ _ ___
.^-4220— -fie
s*.
y
>>
/
<*
/ 8
17
>V
•
Producing Well
A
Dry Hole
£
Dry Hole -Show of Oil
e
Drilling Well
«
Area of production
from Kirkwood Sand
•
Area of production
from McClosky Sand
T
Contours on top of
2
^— —
Kirkwood Sand
N
>>s State Geological Survey
1 mile
Fig. 5. Structure map of area southwest of Murphy pool; key horizon top of
Kirkwood sand. Contour interval 20 feet. Datum sea-level.
On account of the meagre information availahle on the McClosky sand
it was not found possible to make a satisfactory structure contour map using
it as key bed. Its structure seems to be similar to that of the Kirkwood
sand in at least part of the area, as it rises to the north from the Hunt et al.,
Des Boeuf well Xo. 1 (fig. 5, map No. 21) to the George L. Barnett wells
(table of well data. Xos. -4 and 5) in the NE. l/\. sec. T.
Oil Sands
Oil is produced in the area from two horizons, the Kirkwood sand in
the lower part of the Chester series, and the McClosky sand in the Ste.
12
ILLINOIS PETROLEUM
Genevieve limestone of the Meramec series. Other sands, notably the Tracy
and certain Pennsylvanian sands, have given shows of oil.
MC CLOSKY SAND
The McClosky sand is said to have yielded the largest initial produc-
tions of any of the producing sands in Illinois.3 In discussing the McClosky
3Biatchiey, R. s., op. cit, p. 113. Table 3. — Well data on area
Map
No.
Year
drilled
No.
Sec.
Company
Farm and No.
Eleva-
tion
Feet
1
1914
7
T. L. Hartman
W. V. Griggs 2
421 (?)
2
9
7
Borough
W. V. Griggs 2
421
3
1912
7
Titus et al.
J. Des Boeuf 1
502
"4
1915
7
Ohio Oil
Geo. L. Barnett 5
458
a5
1915
7
Ohio Oil
Geo. L. Barnett 6
461
6
1909
7
Ohio Oil
Nancy Buchanan 1
416
7
1914
7
?
Nancy Buchanan 1
466
8
1914
7
?
Nancy Buchanan 2
443
9
1914
7
1
Nancy Buchanan 3
467
10
1915
7
9
Nancy Buchanan 4
?
11
1928
7
Bolton et al.
J. Des Boeuf
501
12
1914
8
Octo
Chas. Garvey 1
455
13
1914
8
Octo
Chas. Garvey 2
426
14
1914
8
Octo
Chas. Garvey 3
409
15
1909
8
Ohio Oil
Geo. L. Barnett 2
442
16
1909
8
Ohio Oil
A. B. Jordan 1
440
17
1914
8
Ohio Oil
A. B. Jordan 8
454
18
1914
8
Ohio Oil
A. B. Jordan 14
451
19
1914
17
Lewis Oil & Gas
M. A. Morris 1
453
20
1915
18
?
Tobias Ramsey 1
444
21
1922
18
Hunt et al.
J. J. Des Boeuf 1
462
22
1928
18
Shelton Oil & Gas
J. J. Des Boeuf 1
483
23
1928
18
Shelton Oil & Gas
J. J. Des Boeuf 2
502
a As the exact location of the two wells on the Geo. L. Barnett farm is not known
RECENT DRILLING NORTHWEST OF ST. FRANC'ISVILLE
13
horizon, Rich says4 : "The McClosky oil comes from a thin sandstone, or
in places, apparently from a soft, oolitic limestone in the upper part of the
Ste. Genevieve formation. The productive horizon is commonly thin, rang-
ing from 2 to 10 feet in the Murphy pool and averaging not more than 10
* Rich, J. L., op. cit., pp. 15S, 159.
northwest of St. Franeisville
Kirkwood sand
McClosky sand
Depth
Feet
Alti-
tude
Feet
Thick-
ness re-
corded
Feet
5
Depth
Feet
Thick-
ness
recorded
Feet
Remarks
1624
—1203
1862
10
Oil production from McClosky
not recorded
80
1866
2
Oil show from McClosky. Small show of
oil at two places in Kirkwood
1742
—1240
2
not dn
lied (?)
"Rich black oil in Kirkwood." Smell of
oil in Tracy (?). Not producing well
1621
—1163
64
1818
6
Show of oil in McClosky
1631
—1170
29
1840
3
Show of gas in McClosky
1565
—1149
65
not drilled
Dry hole
1624
—1158
39
not drilled
Production from Kirkwood
1601
—1158
23
not drilled
1
Production from Kirkwood — oil show in
Ridgley at 1230-51 feet
1625
—1158
20
not drilled
Dry hole
no record
no record
Dry hole — no shows of oil
drilling (June,
1928)
1636
—1181
18
1879
3
Oil production from Kirkwood; small
show of oil in McClosky. T. D. 2010 feet
1610
—1184
20
1829
?
1584
—1175
10
no record
Dry hole
1600
—1158
38
not drilled
Oil production from Kirkwood; best oil
at 1630 feet
1605
—1165
35
not drilled
Dry hole. T. D. 1641 feet
absent (?)
1860
10
Dry hole. Show of gas 1860-1862 feet;
salt water 1862-1870 feet. T. D. 1900 feet
absent (?)
1842
4
Oil production from McClosky
no record
no record 20
Dry hole. No water in Kirkwood. T. D.
1
1990 feet
absent (?)
1852
12
Dry hole: sand logged as Kirkwood at
1730 is probably Tracy; water and show
of oil; McClosky sand dry, good tex-
ture. T. D. 1913 feet.
1693
—1231
67
1905
74
Oil production from McClosky
1719
—1236
23
not drilled
Oil production from Kirkwood
not yet
drilled
not <
Irilled
Show of oil in Bridgeport — drilling
they have been omitted from the map. The Harnett farm is in the NE. % of sec. 7.
14 ILLINOIS PETROLEUM
feet over the entire field. It is clearly not a single bed everywhere. It is
rather a zone in the upper part of the Ste. Genevieve formation, in which
here one, there another, bed carries the oil, the porosity of the rock being
evidently the controlling factor. Within this zone, which has a maximum
observed thickness of 80 feet, one to three oil-bearing horizons are reported.
In nearby wells it is not uncommonly found that in one well the upper
porous zone is productive; in another the lower.... The McClosky oil is
green, with a large sulphur content, and its gas has a rank odor."
TRACY SAND
The Tracy sand is intermediate in position between the McClosky and
the Kirkwood sands. It has been defined as "a soft, calcareous sandstone,
in the lower part of the Chester group, which lies on the average from 100
to 118 feet above the upper productive horizon of the McClosky sand."5
The Tracy sand has not been reported in any of the wells in the area, but a
comparison of the sand record of the Titus et al., Des Boeuf No. 1 well
(SE. corner sec. ?) (fig. 5, map No. 3) with the log of the Hunt et al., Des
Boeuf No. 1 well in sec. 18 (fig. 5, map No. 21) strongly suggests that the
sand called McClosky in the former well is in reality the Tracy sand, and
that the McClosky sand has not yet been tested in the SE. corner sec. 7.
A smell of oil was reported in the (probable) Tracy sand. The Tobias
Ramsey No. 1 well in the south part of sec. 18 (fig. 5, map No. 20) had a
show of oil in a sand which has the approximate stratigraphic position of
the Tracy.
KIRKWOOD SAND
The Kirkwood is the most prolific sand in the Lawrence County field.
It lies on the average 200 to 230 feet above the upper lens of the McClosky
sand. Rich says :°
"In several localities within the (Vincennes) quadrangle the Kirkwood
sand is lenticular, having in many places two and even three lenses. In some
places the lower, in others the upper, beds are developed. The thickness of
the sand also varies greatly, ranging from 0 to 100 feet. • The average thick-
ness has been computed by Blatchley to be 33 feet. Owing to irregular
thickening and thinning both the top and the bottom of the sand bed or beds
are irregular. On account of this irregularity and of the replacing of one
lens here and there by another higher or lower in the series, contours drawn
on the top of the Kirkwood sand show many irregularities which should not
be interpreted as structural features of the rock formations as a whole. The
contours do, however, represent with the greatest attainable accuracy the
5 Rich, J. L., op. cit., p. 160.
6 Rich, J. L., op. cit., p. 160.
RECENT DIUI.LING NORTHWEST OF ST. FEANCISVTIXE 15
elevation at the various localities of the upper sand of the Kirk wood
horizon."
"The Kirkwood sand is a medium, fine-grained sand often called the
'sugar' sand because it resembles brown sugar in the churn-drill samples . . .
The ... oil is generally considered sweet oil which is more free from sulphur
than is the oil from the lower sand."7
Several of the wells in the area (table 3, well No. 4 and fig. 5, map Nos.
6 and 21) had about 65 feet of Kirkwood sand, divided approximately in the
middle by a "break" of 4 to 12 feet of shale. In southeastern Lawrence
County the part above the shale is generally oil-bearing and the part below is
water-bearing.
PENNSYLVANIAN SANDS
The Buchanan sand which lies at the base of the Pottsville formation is
invariably water-bearing in the area. The Bridgeport sand, also in the Potts-
ville formation but about 250 feet above the Buchanan, is generally water-
bearing, but in at least one well in the area, the Shelton Oil and Gas Com-
pany, Des Boeuf Xo. 2 in sec. 18 (fig. 5, map No. 23), it had a considerable
show of oil.
Recent Development
The Shelton Oil and Gas Company drilled two wells on the Des Boeuf
farm in sec. 18 in 1928. The first of these (fig. 5, map No. 22) had a show
of oil in a sand from 905 to 920 feet and had an initial production of 35
barrels per day natural in the Kirkwood sand from 1719 to 1742 feet. It
was shot with 40 quarts of nitroglycerin and apparently the shot penetrated
the lower, water-bearing part of the Kirkwood sand for water came in in
considerable quantity and the well produced only 3 or 4 barrels of oil a day.
After being cleaned out the well produced a steadily increasing amount of
oil. The second well (fig. 5, Xo. 23) produced at an initial rate of 24
barrels per day from the Bridgeport sand, from 1012 to 1025 feet. After
shooting with 40 quarts of nitroglycerin water came in and oil production
stopped. The well is to be deepened to the Kirkwood or possibly to the
McClosky sand.
A well drilled in 1922 on the Des Boeuf farm in sec. 18 (fig. 5, map
Xo. 21) had an initial production of 9 barrels a day from the McClosky
sand. Since then it has produced steadily and is now making 5 barrels a
day. The following is the driller's log of this well :
7 Blatchley, R. S., Unpublished data, quoted by Rich, J. L., op. tit., p. 161.
16
ILLINOIS PETROLEUM
Log of Hunt et al. Des Boeuf well No. 1, sec. 18, T. 2 N.. R. 11 W.
(Elevation 462 feet)
Thickness Depth
Feet Feet
Soil 6 6
"Slate", blue 14 20
Gravel 1 21
"Slate", blue 21 42
Sand 53 95
"Slate" and coal (water) 5 100
Sand 63 163
"Slate", blue 77 240
Lime, soft 10 250
"Slate", black, soft 9 259
Lime, hard 13 272
"Slate", blue, soft 12 284
Lime, hard 6 290
"Slate", white 4 294
Lime, soft 14 308
"Slate", black 28 336
Lime 10 346
"Slate", light 62 408
Coal 2 410
Lime 2 412
"Slate", light 13 425
"Slate", dark 10 435
Sand 34 469
"Slate", black 38 608
"Slate", white 7 615
Lime 20 635
"Slate", light 75 710
"Slate", black 15 725
"Slate", light 10 735
"Slate", dark 35 770
Sand 30 800
"Slate", black 5 805
Lime 10 815
"Slate", light 55 870
Sand, white, soft (water) 20 890
"Slate" 8 898
Sand 28 926
"Slate", white 4 930
"Slate", black 13 943
Lime 6 949
Sand (oil) 11 960
Lime 12 972
Sand ( water ) 45 1017
"Slate" 5 1022
Lime 2 1024
Sand 15 1039
RECENT DHILLING NORTHWEST OF ST. FRANC IS VILLK 17
Log of Hunt et al. Des Boruf well Xo. 1. see. IX. T. 2 N., R. 11 W — Concluded
Thickness Depth
Feet Feet
"Slate" 16 1055
Sand (water) 28 1083
"Slate" 2 1085
Sand (water) 27 1112
"Slate" 12 1124
Lime 3 1127
"Slate" 38 1165
Sand (water) 15 1180
"Slate", black 80 1260
"Slate", light 10 1270
Lime, light 3 1273
"Slate" 22 1295
Lime 3 1298
Sand (water) 24 1322
"Slate", dark 5 1327
Lime 13 1340
"Slate" 8 1348
Lime and sand 27 1375
Sand (water) 23 1398
"Slate" 10 1408
Sand 67 1475
Lime, brown, hard 15 1490
Lime, blue 68 1558
Sand 65 1623
"Slate" 24 1647
Lime, hard 14 1661
"Slate" 19 1680
Lime 13 1693
Kirkwood Sand 29 1722
"Slate" 2 1724
Sand ( water ) 36 1760
"Slate" 6 1766
Sand, broken 6 1772
Lime 21 1793
Sand 40 1833
"Slate" 9 1842
Lime, hard 8 1850
Shale, red 3 1853
Lime 5 1858
"Slate" 3 1861
Lime 5 1866
"Slate" 2 1868
Lime 17 1885
Small show oil 1856-1881
"Slate" 4 1889
Lime 16 1905
McClosky Sand 74 1979
18 ILLINOIS PETROLEUM
Correlation: The base of the Pennsylvanian system is probably at 1475 feet;
the base of the Chester series is somewhere between 1853 and 1905 feet. Identifi-
cation of sands was made by driller.
A new well is being drilled by Bolton and others on the Des Boeuf farm
100 feet west and 7 70 feet north of the SE. corner sec. 7 (fig. 5, map
No. 11).
Prospects for New Production
In view of the steady production for six years from the McClosky sand
in the Hunt et al. Des. Boeuf well in sec. 18 (fig. 5, map No. 21), and of
the probable rise of this formation to the north, prospects for McClosky
production in most of the SE. 34 sec. 7 appear to be good if the sand con-
tinues porous. As it is probable that the McClosky sand was not tested in
the Titus et al. Des Boeuf well (fig. 5, map No. 3) there is a possibility that
McClosky production may be extended eastward into the SW. 34 sec. 8.
As commercial production from the Kirkwood sand was found in the
Shelton Oil and Gas Company Des Boeuf No. 1. (fig. 5, map No. 22), and
"rich black oil" was reported in this sand in the Titus et al. Des Boeuf No.
1 (fig. 5, map No. 3), there appear to be good prospects for Kirkwood pro-
duction in the same territory (SE. 34 sec. 7 and SW. 34 sec. 8) where the
Kirkwood sand rises to the north.
The presence of the terrace in the S W. 34 sec. 7 and the N W. 34 sec.
18 suggests the possibility that Kirkwood or McClosky production or both
might be extended westward from the producing wells in sec. 18.
In developing Kirkwood production in this area care should be taken
not to penetrate the water-bearing sand below the shale break. Because
of the risk of breaking into the water sand it is not considered advisable to
shoot the upper part of the sand if commercial production can be obtained
without shooting.
11 (89)
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