Account of a Well Di'illed for Oil or Gas at Oxford, 0. 7 1 



sometimes larger, but in all cases in such condition as to be recog- 

 nized as the true blue limestone of the Cincinnati Group. At a 

 depth of 302 feet a small vein of gas was struck. This, when 

 lighted, blazed up to a height of from ten to twelve feet, but it 

 soon went out, and, as it accumulated from time to time, was 

 lighted to gratify the curiosity of on-lookers. 



The limestone continued to the depth of four hundred feet, 

 and was succeded by a bed of exceedingly compact, blue shale. 

 This came up m small fragments, seldom as large as a grain of corn, 

 and showed no change of character for 380 feet. Then, at a depth 

 of 780 feet, there was struck a stratum of exceedingly hard, dark, 

 almost black limestone, which the drill penetrated but slowly, the 

 upper part being pierced at the rate of only three feet in two and 

 a quarter hours. Lower down it was less hard, but still more com ■ 

 pact than the blue limestone above had been. The fragments 

 came to the surface very finely ground up, the pieces seldom larger 

 than wheat grains. This rock continued for fifty feet, and is the 

 only one in the scale which can be referred to the Utica slate of 

 New York. It is very similar to the rock exposed at a low level 

 at Cincinnati or above the city, and is probably the same as that 

 referred to by Prof. Orton as being of Trenton age.* If it be the 

 Utica Slate it is two hundred and fifty feet less in thickness than 

 that found at Findlay. 



That this marked the end of one and the beginning of another 

 formation was evident from the specimens taken from 835 feet, for 

 these were a whitish limestone, a rock evidently foreign to the sur- 

 face of the State, and the probable equivalent of the Birdseye 

 Limestone of New York. This continued with scarcely any 

 variation to the depth of 11 15 feet, when it became darker. From 

 this down to about 1280 feet, there were alternate bands of dark 

 and light material. Magnesia was found in all the samples tested. 

 At 1255 f^^t there was a strong smell of petroleum as well as at 

 1265 and 1295 feet. 



At 1280 feet there was an evident change. The rock became 

 much darker and coarser. It had a perceptable greenish hue at 

 1295 leet, vith a strong smell of oil. At 1300 it was blueish but 

 also coarse. At 1312 to 1315 it was very coarse, with light colored* 

 and blue fragments intermingled. The blue contained many par- 

 ticles of iron pyrites. At 1320 it was very fine. At 1325 it was 

 coarser, the white fragments effervescing readily with cold muriatic 



*See second edition of 'Petroleum and Intlaninnble Gas of Ohio."— Columbus 1SS7. 



