WELLS OF MARION COUNTY, ILLINOIS. 759 



Throughout much of the county rock is entered in wells and coal 

 shafts at depths of only 20 or 30 feet, but borings at Salem, Odin, and 

 Sandoval penetrate over 100 feet of drift, apparently striking the line of a 

 preglacial valley. Where the drift exceeds 20 feet in depth its lower por- 

 tion is usually a blue till, but where less than 20 feet the till is of a yellow 

 or brown color. Wells are usually obtained at only 15 to 30 feet, and the 

 majority do not enter rock. 



INDIVIDUAL WELLS. 



At Patoka, in the northwest part of the county, a well at the railway 

 station is reported in the Geology of Illinois to have struck rock at a depth 

 of 60 feet. It penetrated the following beds: 



Section of well at Patoka, Illinois. 



Feet- 

 Soil, clay, etc 15 



Hardpan 15 



Blue pebbly clay with fragments of coal and wood 30 



Fossiliferous limestone 2 



Soft shale 30 



Total depth 92 



The wells in that vicinity ordinarily obtain water without entering rock. 



At Kinmundy, in the north part of the county, rock is entered at 12 to 

 20 feet, and wells often penetrate it a few feet to obtain water. 



At Salem wells are usually obtained at about 20 feet from sandy beds 

 in the drift. A coal boring reported in the Geology of Illinois penetrated 

 126 feet of drift, as follows : 



Section of coal boring at Salem, Illinois. 



Feet. 



Soil 2 



Ferruginous crust of clay 3 



Yellow till 9 



Yellow till and sand 10 



Blue till 50 



Brown clay, containing wood 30 



Blue clay, sand, and wood . 12 



Black soil 1 



Blue mud and sand 9 



Total drift 126 



At Odin a coal boring penetrated 100 feet of drift, and at Sandoval 

 128 feet, Wells at Sandoval obtain water at 14 to 18 feet from a sandy 

 clay. A good well is estimated to yield 35 barrels a day. 



