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Mineral Resources > Online Spatial Data > Geology > by state > Kansas Geology

Geologic units in Republic county, Kansas

Alluvium (Phanerozoic | Cenozoic | Quaternary | Pleistocene Holocene) at surface, covers 56 % of this area

unconsolidated sand, silt, clay, and gravel

Lithology: gravel; sand; silt; clay or mud

Loess (Phanerozoic | Cenozoic | Quaternary | Pleistocene Holocene) at surface, covers 17 % of this area

eolian silts

Lithology: silt

Carlile Shale (Phanerozoic | Mesozoic | Cretaceous-Late) at surface, covers 3 % of this area

chalky shale with bentonite and thick chalk beds, dark gray fissile shale containing septarian concretions, and fine-grained sandstone.

Lithology: shale; limestone; sandstone

Greenhorn Limestone and Graneros Shale (Phanerozoic | Mesozoic | Cretaceous-Late) at surface, covers 18 % of this area

Greenhorn FM- thin bedded gray, chalky limestone and calcareous shale. Graneros Shale- fissile, noncalcareous, gray shale locally contains sandstone and siltstone beds.

Lithology: limestone; shale; sandstone; siltstone

Dune Sand (Phanerozoic | Cenozoic | Quaternary | Pleistocene Holocene) at surface, covers 0.4 % of this area

unconsolidated dune sand

Lithology: sand

Dakota Formation (Phanerozoic | Mesozoic | Cretaceous-Early) at surface, covers 4 % of this area

White, gray, red, brown and tan kaolinitic claystone, mudstone, shale and siltstone interbedded with grayish to yellowish brown thick lenticular sandstone beds. It also contains lignite and sandstone is commonly well cemented with iron oxide and calcite.

Lithology: claystone; mudstone; shale; siltstone; sandstone; coal

Dakota Group (Phanerozoic | Mesozoic | Cretaceous-Early) at surface, covers < 0.1 % of this area

Upper part is white, light-gray, brownish-gray, yellow, redish-brown, and red sandstone and shale. Sandstone is very fine to coarse grained, friable, micaeous, crossbedded, and lenticular; locally contains gravel near base. contains numerous zones of ironstone and siltstone concretions of variable thickness. Middle part is light-gray, yellow, red brown and dark-gray, sandy carbonaceous shale; commonly contains a zone of concretions near top. Lower part is sandstone similar to that in upper except there are zones of siderite concretions and, locally a basal zone of chert pebbles. Approx. max thickness 600 ft.

Lithology: sandstone; shale; gravel

Alluvium (Phanerozoic | Cenozoic | Quaternary | Pleistocene) at surface, covers 2 % of this area

unconsolidated sand, silt, clay, and gravel

Lithology: gravel; sand; silt; clay or mud

Greenhorn Limestone and Graneros Shale (Phanerozoic | Mesozoic | Cretaceous-Late) at surface, covers 0.3 % of this area

Greenhorn Limestone- medium- to light-gray limestone interbedded with argillaceous limestone, marl and calcareous shale; contains Inoceramus fossils. Upper and lower contacts gradational. Approx. max thickness 30 ft. Graneros Shale- medium- to dark-gray, partly calcareous shale. Interbeds of siltstone, sandstone, and carbonaceous shale, and thin bentonite layers in upper part. Approx. max thickness 60 ft.

Lithology: shale; limestone; siltstone; sandstone; carbonate

Carlile Shale (Phanerozoic | Mesozoic | Cretaceous-Late) at surface, covers < 0.1 % of this area

Shale, limestone, and sandstone. At top, locally 5 feet of gray to pale-yellowish brown siltstone or very fine grained sandstone. Upper 200 feet of shale is drak gray to medium gray; locally contains ironstone concretions, and interbedded with thin siltstone. Lower 80 feet of shale is medium gray, calcareous, and contains many very thin bedded, fossiliferous, shaly limestone and calcareous shale layers. Approx. max thickness 300 ft.

Lithology: shale; limestone; sandstone; siltstone