Bishop — Geology of Erie County. 379 



First oil (green) and gas, 1,725 feet. 



Second oil (amber), with salt water, 1,760 " 



To bottom, 1,825 « 



Kerr Well. (Begun August, 1888; record from M. Mclntyre.) 



Drive pipe (through drift), 379 feet. 



Casing, 755 " 



Top of Corniferous, 1,725 " 



Gas, 1,885 " 



Depth of well, . 2,150 " 



This is the largest producing gas well yet found in the county, and 

 probably in the state. Gas was struck on October 27th. There was, at the 



time, in the well, the string of tools sixty-five feet long, together with more 

 than 1,800 feet of rope, the whole weighing probably two tons. The escaping 

 gas forced everything out of the well and at least 150 feet into the air. The 

 drill, in descending, struck upon its end and penetrated the soil to the depth 

 of fifteen or twenty feet, bending the stem like a wire. The noise made by 

 the gas escaping through a five-inch hole could be distinctly heard at Spring- 

 ville, nearly six miles away. It was ten days before the pressure decreased 

 enough to permit the resumption of drilling, and Mr. Mclntyre estimates that 

 during this time the daily How could not have been less than twent\ " five or 

 thirty million cubic feet. The well is now owned by the Buffalo Natural 

 Gas Fuel Co., and is known as the " Freak." ( )rdinariry it is held in reserve, 

 the pressure gradually rising to about 600 pounds. When an unusual 

 amount of gas is needed, this gas is turned on to the line, and the well furnishes 

 a million feet a day for a period of two or three weeks. By this time the 

 pressure has fallen to about 300 pounds, and the well is shut off and allowed 

 to " rest." In the course of two or three weeks the pressure rises again to 600 

 pounds, and the well is re-opened. 



The horizon in which this gas occurs is probably the upper part of the 

 water-lime, the rock immediately below the Corniferous limestone. 



Along the northern outcrop of this rock in Erie county, there is a layer, 

 locally known as "bull-head," which is filled with cavities from the size of a 

 pea up to several inches in diameter. This rock also contains cavernous 

 seams through which subterranean waters flow and appear at the outcrop in 

 copious springs. 



The immense volume of gas from the Kerr well indicates that the gas 

 accumulates in a cavity so large that it cannot readily empty itself w hen 

 opened. 



