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Research about South Dakota, Wyoming

Source-linked reports with geographic coverage including South Dakota, Wyoming.

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Stratigraphic sections and correlation of beds in the Inyan Kara Group and Morrison Formation, north end of the Black Hills, Crook County, Wyoming, and Butte County, South Dakota

Descriptions of 47 stratigraphic sections of the Ivan Kara Group and Morrison Formation are given for an area extending from bluffs on the west side of the Belle Fourche River in T. 56 N., R. 64 W., Crook County, Wyo., southeastward across the Bear Lodge Mountains to a point in T. 8 N.,R. 1 E., Butte County, S. Dak.--a distance of about 35 miles. Also given are four sections measured farther southeast in the area between Belle Fourche and Rapid City, South Dakota. The Morrison, Lakota, and Fall River Formations are each subdivided into two parts and the subdivisions are correlated for most of the area.

South Dakota, Wyoming↗

Hydrology of the upper Cheyenne River basin: Part A. Hydrology of stock-water reservoirs in upper Cheyenne River basin; Part B. Sediment sources and drainage-basin characteristics in upper Cheyenne River basin

The objective of this investigation was to determine the effect on runoff of the many stock reservoirs in the Cheyenne River basin above Angostura Dam. As a first step it was necessary to determine, within reasonable limits of accuracy, the number of reservoirs in the basin, the storage capacity, the drainage area, and the water loss from each. A sampling method was adopted because the size of the basin, 9,100 square miles, prohibited examination of all reservoirs within the drainage area. Forty-nine sample areas of 9 square miles each were selected as a 5-percent sample of the 955 complete quarter townships within the basin above Angostura Dam. All reservoirs located within the sample quarter townships were surveyed.

South Dakota, Wyoming↗

Diagrammatic restored section of the Inyan Kara group, Morrison formation, and Unkpapa sandstone of the western side of the Black Hills, Wyoming and South Dakota

The Inyan Kara group of Early Cretaceous age and the underlying Morrison formation and Unkpapa sandstone of Late Jurassic age comprise about 300 to 850 feet of gently dipping predominantly nonmarine rocks that crop out along the flanks of the Black Hills in northeastern Wyoming and western South Dakota. Detailed mapping and stratigraphic studies of these rocks were made from 1952 to 1957 by the U.S. Geological Survey on behalf of the Division of Raw Materials of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission. One of the results of the studies is a correlation of formational and intraformational units along the western side of the Black Hills for a distance of about 140 miles. The generalized section above, which has a greatly exaggerated vertical scale, shows the main lithologic units that have been traced and correlated, and the stratigraphic position of uranium deposits in various parts of the Black Hills in relation to these units. Geologists who have contributed to the diagrammatic section are listed on another part of this sheet and the areas for which each is responsible are shown on the accompanying map. The brief text below summarizes some of the broad stratigraphic relations within the Inyan Kara group and underlying formations.

South Dakota, Wyoming↗

Geology of part of the Fanny Peak quadrangle, Wyoming-South Dakota

The Fanny Peak quadrangle is located on the west flank of the Black Hills. The exposed strata total over 4000 feet in thickness and range in age from Mississippian to late Cretaceous. Local surficial Cenozoic deposits are common. The upper 200 to 300 feet of the Minnelusa formation is a breccia whose origin is attributed to removal of anhydrite by ground water and consequent collapse of the overlying strata. Crude bedding indicates uniform collapse; breccia pipes result from more intensive brecciation. The anhydrite probably occurred as lenses at different levels. 3recciation started after the Black Hills were uplifted and the Minnelusa was breached. Calcium sulphate in spring waters attests to present removal of anhydrite. The Minnekahta limestone exhibits secondary structures attributed to gravity sliding. Cascade folds and slip sheets with displacements of not more than 30 feet developed in exposed beds whose dip is more than 30 degrees. Numerous intraformational folds and faults formed when beds within the limestone slid over each other. Shortening of the Ninnekahta limestone of about 200 feet per mile is estimated. Four monoclines and associated structural terraces are interpreted as reflecting six fault blocks at depth with minimum displacement of 6000 feet. The intersecting Fanny Peak and Black Hills monoclines represent lines of major deformation. The Fanny Peak monocline passes into a near-vertical normal fault with a throw of approximately 800 feet two miles north of the quadrangle.

South Dakota, Wyoming↗

Geology and water resources of the northern portion of the Black Hills and adjoining regions in South Dakota and Wyoming

This paper, which supplements the report on the geology and water resources of the southern half of the Black Hills, published in 1901, is the result of studies made at intervals during the years 1899 to 1907. It relates to an area of about 7,500 square miles, situated about half in South Dakota and half in the northeast corner of Wyoming (Pl. II), and covering the northern half of the Black Hills uplift and a wide area of adjacent plains. The report describes the geology of the sedimentary rocks - their stratigraphy, structure, and history - and discusses their mineral resources, including underground water, coal, gypsum, etc. It also contains information respecting surface waters available for irrigation and stock raising, timber, climate, and the history of the topographic development of the region. The crystalline rocks of the central portion of the Black Hills area and the various igneous rocks of later age are shown on some of the accompanying maps but without differentiation, as the study of their geology was not within the scope of the investigation; neither are their mineral resources considered here, for these are treated in other publications. In the field work I have been assisted mainly by Prof. C. C. O'Harra, of the School of Mines at Rapid, who has mapped the geology of large areas about Aladdin, the Devils Tower, Belle Fourche, and Rapid. Dr. W. S. Tangier Smith has mapped portions of the Bear Lodge and Nigger Hill uplifts, and Mr. C. A. Fisher has assisted in portions of the work. The geology of the region from Sturgis to a point beyond Spearfish Canyon was mapped by Prof. T. A. Jaggar, jr., with the assistance of Mr. J. M. Boutwell, in 1898 and 1899. It is desirable to repeat here the statement made in my previous report that all who study the geology of the Black Hills must feel impressed by the remarkably clear general conceptions of the geologic relations of this region afforded by the survey made by Mr. Henry Newton over a quarter of a century ago. In one short season, with many unfavorable conditions for traveling, he determined most of the broader features and recorded many of the essential details. His posthumous report, edited by Mr. G. K. Gilbert, will always remain a standard work on Black Hills geology. Later studies have added greatly to our knowledge of the details of the stratigraphy and structure, the distribution of the rocks and minerals, and the age of the beds, and have afforded means for a more complete elucidation of the geologic history, especially the physiographic development of the Black Hills region.

South Dakota, Wyoming↗

Economic resources of the northern Black Hills

The mining district of the Black Hills comprised within the Spearfish and Sturgis quadrangles was surveyed geologically in the summers of 1898 and 1899 under the direction of Mr. S. F. Emmons. The following pages present a brief summary of the geologic features, more especially with reference to ore-bearing formations. These are confined to the Algonkian and Paleozoic strata and their associated eruptives.

South Dakota, Wyoming↗