Bishop — Geology of Erie Cor m y. 



353 



feet deep, getting gas in the white Medina near the bottom, with a pressure 

 of 105 lbs. in thirty minutes. Well No. 2 was drilled to the depth of 1,000 

 feet, but struck gas at about the same level as the first, 800 feet. The two 

 wells are now coupled together and used to furnish heat for cooking through- 

 out the buildings. At first the gas was used under the boilers, running four 

 forty horse power and two forty-five horse power boilers ; but later coal was 

 substituted for this purpose and gas reserved for the ranges. The original 

 rock-pressure was 325 lbs., and the wells are said to furnish nearly as much 

 gas as they did at the beginning. Information regarding the above wells was 

 furnished by Professor Franklin W. Barrows and Mr. Winspear, engineer at 

 the almshouse. 



Kensington Well. This well was sunk near the railroad tracks at the 

 north end of the Spaulding Machine Shops. No gas was found and no record 

 kept of the rocks through which the drill passed. 



A well was sunk for water at the Grattan & Jennings quarry, Amherst 

 street and Delaware, Lackawanna railroad, without finding gypsum. The 

 well was one hundred feet deep. 



Wells of the Buffalo Cement Company. Near the Main street crossing of 

 the New York Central Belt-line is a group of twelve wells, eleven of which 

 have been drilled by the Buffalo Cement Co. Of the first three wells 

 Mr. Charles A. A shimmer has given an account,* which I quote: 



"Well No. 1 was drilled in 1883, with a diamond drill. * * * This 

 well shows gas in a very limited quantity at a depth of 451 feet, 9 inches, 

 which slightly increased in volume down to 490 feet, (5 inches, when the 

 drilling ceased. The gas rock, as shown by the cores, is a very compact sand- 

 stone with numerous pin-point openings. 



"Well No. 2 was put down in 1884 to a depth of 1,305 feet, but proved 

 unsatisfactory. No salt was found and but little salt water; and no per- 

 ceptible increase of gas was obtained beyond that shown in Well No. 1. Mr. 

 L. J. Bennett writes that from the best information based upon his drill- 

 notes, the various rocks penetrated in Well No. 2, were as follow s : 



Lower Helderberg limestone, 50 feet. 



Salina shales, 550 " 



Niagara and Clinton limestone and shales, .... 185 " 

 Medina sandstone, 520 " 



Total, 1,305 feet." 



* See " Petroleum and Natural Gas in New York State," by C. A. Ashburner, p. 19. 



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