194 GEOLOGY OF THE DENVER BASIN. 



ill West Denver and along the western bank of Lake Archer the Denver 

 strata appear distinctly. 



On the south bank of Cherry Creek, in Shackleton Place addition to 

 Denver, a small outcrop occurs. Wells in Ashley's addition and at other 

 places on Capitol Hill prove the presence of beds there, and the excavation 

 for the reservoir on Capitol Hill has also disclosed Denver strata under the 

 Pleistocene. 



North of sand creek. — The area of Denver beds north of Sand Creek is very 

 small and no good outcrops are known. A well sunk on the ridge alio ut 

 '2 miles northeast of where the Kansas Pacific Railroad crosses the creek 

 struck Denver beds of clayey or shaly character and then passed into 

 Laramie. One mile southeast of this hill an outcrop occurs. Deep Pleis- 

 tocene deposits cover everything here, and the line of the Denver beds is 

 drawn to connect the known line at the Platte with the line of outcrops 

 along Coal Creek. That the ridge upon which the above well is situated 

 is made up of Denver, along its southern slope at least, is probable from the 

 known exposures along Sand Creek, both above and below the Kansas 

 Pacific Railroad track. Most of these are on the south bank, but their 

 natural connection is with the district to the north. For a mile along the 

 southwestern bank of Sand Creek, extending from near the railroad down- 

 ward, there is a continuous outcrop of typical Denver beds, composed of 

 shales and sandstones, with lignitic seams. There are no outcrops on Sand 

 Creek below this. 



Area between Coal and Cherry creeks. East nlld SOlltlieaSt of DeUVei", between 



the creeks named, the Denver formation extends for from 15 to 20 miles, 

 underlying what is at present a barren cactus-covered plain, in which one 

 would not suspect, at first glance, that numerous rock outcrops could 

 be found, as is in fact the case. Near Denver the Pleistocene deposits 

 bury the solid rock formation s<> deeply that exposures are rare, and that 

 part of the plain to the east which is underlain by the Laramie is also poor 

 in ruck outcrops, while in the area of the Denver beds almost every water- 

 course has cut into the strata. The high "round east of the city, of which 

 Capitol Hill is a part, presents very few good exposures, but the southern 



