USGS Home
Contact USGS
Search USGS

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

Geologic units in Hughes county, Oklahoma

Holdenville Formation or Holdenville Shale (Phanerozoic | Paleozoic | Carboniferous Pennsylvanian-Middle) at surface, covers 4 % of this area

OKLAHOMA CITY- "Holdenville Shale"- Mainly clay shale with some interbedded fine-grained calcareous sandstone locally containing beds of crystalline limestone. Thickness ranges from 100 to 280 feet. FORT SMITH- "Holdenville Shale"- Shale, thin sandstone and minor limestones. ARDMORE-SHERMAN- "Holdenville Formation"- Shale, blue-gray, with light-brown sandstones and chert conglomerates and 2 prominent limestones--the upper, or "Sasakwa Limestone," white, fine-grained, 1 to 15 feet thick, 35 feet below the top, and the lower, or "Homer Limestone," dark-brown, sandy, 2 to 10 feet thick, 40 to 70 feet below the Sasakwa. Thickness, 210 to 260 feet. (Upper Franks Conglomerate)

Lithology: shale; sandstone; conglomerate; limestone

Thurman Sandstone (Phanerozoic | Paleozoic | Carboniferous Pennsylvanian-Middle) at surface, covers 2 % of this area

OKLAHOMA CITY- Mainly medium-grained, silty sandstone with cherty conglomerate at base. Only a few feet exposed in quadrangle. FORT SMITH- Sandstone and shale. ARDMORE-SHERMAN- Sandstone, brown, fine- to coarse-grained, with some gray shale and basal 50-foot chert conglomerate; thickness, 80 to 250 feet, decreasing southwestward. McALESTER TEXARKANA- Sandstone, brown, fine- to coarse-grained, with some gray shale and a basal 50-foot chert conglomerate; grades northward into Boggy Formation; top eroded at many places; thickness, 200 feet.

Lithology: sandstone; shale; conglomerate

Wewoka Formation (Phanerozoic | Paleozoic | Carboniferous Pennsylvanian-Middle) at surface, covers 15 % of this area

OKLAHOMA CITY- Interbedded fine- to medium-grained sandstone and calcareous shale. Thickness ranges from 400 to 750 feet. FORT SMITH- Shale, sandstone, and minor limestones ARDMORE-SHERMAN- Shale, blue-gray, sandstone, chert conglomerate, and limestone conglomerate; thickness, 400 feet.

Lithology: shale; sandstone; limestone; conglomerate

Terrace Deposits (Phanerozoic | Cenozoic | Quaternary | Pleistocene) at surface, covers 14 % of this area

WOODWARD- Lenticular and interfingering deposits of light-tan to gray gravel, sand, silt, clay, and volcanic ash. Sand dunes are common in many places. Thickness ranges up to 150 feet and averages about 60 feet. ENID- Sand, silt, clay, and gravel. Maximum thickness, about 75 feet (23 m) along major streams. TULSA- Fine gravel, sand, silt, and clay. CLINTON- Stream-laid deposits of sand, silt, clay, gravel, and volcanic ash; thickness ranges from 0 to about 120 feet. OKLAHOMA CITY- Lenticular beds of sand, silt, clay, and gravel. Thickness ranges from a few feet to about 100 feet and probably averages about 50 feet along major streams. FORT SMITH- Gravel, sand, silt, and clay. LAWTON- Sand, clay, and gravel as much as 75 feet (23 m) in Tillman County, ranging from 5 to 50 feet (2 to 15 m) elsewhere. ARDMORE-SHERMAN- Gravel, sand, silt, clay, and volcanic ash; thickness, about 5 to 50 feet; at various levels, as high as 160 feet above present flood plains. McALESTER TEXARKANA- Gravel, sand, silt, clay, and volcanic ash; several levels 20 to 160 feet or more above present flood plains, with each level containing deposits that average 20 to 30 feet in thickness, some windblown sand on top; may include colluvial wash down sides of hills

Lithology: sand; gravel; volcanic ash

Wetumka Shale (Phanerozoic | Paleozoic | Carboniferous Pennsylvanian-Middle) at surface, covers 2 % of this area

OKLAHOMA CITY- Mainly sandy, silty, laminated shale 100 to 200 feet thick FORT SMITH- Shale, minor sandstones, and minor limestones. ARDMORE-SHERMAN- Shale, blue-gray, with some sandstones and siltstones; thickness, 120 to 250 feet

Lithology: shale; sandstone; siltstone; limestone

Calvin Sandstone (Phanerozoic | Paleozoic | Carboniferous Pennsylvanian-Middle) at surface, covers 16 % of this area

OKLAHOMA CITY- Medium-grained, thin-bedded to massive sandstone nd silty shale. Thickness ranges from 230 to about 440 feet. FORT SMITH- Shale and sandstone ARDMORE-SHERMAN- Sandstone, brown, medium-grained, with some gray shale; thickness, 40 to 320 feet, thinner southward.

Lithology: sandstone; shale

Boggy Formation (Phanerozoic | Paleozoic | Carboniferous Pennsylvanian-Middle) at surface, covers 0.2 % of this area

TULSA- Shale, sandstone, and coal. FORT SMITH- Shale, sandstone, and coal; includes Bluejacket Sandstone Member at base. ARDMORE-SHERMAN- Shale and sandstone, blue-gray to brown, fine- to coarse- grained, with some thin limestone lenses and a coal bed 2.5 feet thick about 400 feet above base. Thickness, 1,250 to 2,800 feet. "Bluejacket Sandstone," IPbj, at base, 8 to 12 feet thick, with 2-foot "Secor coal" 50 feet above top of Bluejacket. (Lower Franks Conglomerate) McALESTER TEXARKANA- Shale, brown, to blue-gray, illitic, chloritic, with many sandstones, fine- to coarse-grained, micaceous, quartzose, moderately to well-indurated, with "Secor coal" about 50 feet above base; thickness, 2,140 to 4,000 feet, increasing eastward.

Lithology: shale; sandstone; limestone; coal

Alluvium (Phanerozoic | Cenozoic | Quaternary | Holocene) at surface, covers 15 % of this area

WOODWARD- Lenticular and interfingering deposits of gravel, sand, silt, and clay. Generally light-tan to gray. Thickness along major streams ranges up to 100 feet and probably averages 40 feet; along minor streams the thickness ranges up to 45 feet and probably averages 20 feet. ENID- Sand, silt, clay, and locally gravel. Maximum thickness ranges from 30 to 80 feet (9 to 24 m) along major streams and from 0 to 60 feet (0 to 18 m) along minor streams. TULSA- Gravel, sand, silt, and clay. TULSA- Gravel, sand, silt, and clay. OKLAHOMA CITY- Sand, silt, clay, and lenticular beds of gravel. Thickness ranges from about 30 to 100 feet and probably averages about 50 feet along major streams. Along minor streams, thickness ranges from a few feet to about 50 feet and probably averages about 25 feet. LAWTON- Sand, clay, and gravel as much as 50 feet (15 m) thick; Shown only along major streams and tributaries . ARDMORE-SHERMAN- Gravel, sand, silt, and clay, including low terraces; thickness, about 25 to 100 feet. McALESTER TEXARKANA- Gravel, sand, silt, and clay, including low terraces about 30 feet above channels; thickness, about 50 feet along Little River and 110 feet along Red River

Lithology: alluvium

Stuart Shale (Phanerozoic | Paleozoic | Carboniferous Pennsylvanian-Middle) at surface, covers 3 % of this area

OKLAHOMA CITY- Mostly laminated clay shale and minor amounts of silty sandstone. Thickness ranges from 80 to 180 feet. FORT SMITH- Shale and minor sandstone. ARDMORE-SHERMAN- Shale, blue to dark-gray, with some fine- to medium-grained brown sandstones; thickness, 80 to 300 feet, decreasing southwestward. McALESTER TEXARKANA- Shale, blue to dark-gray, with some fine- to medium-grained sandstones; top eroded; lower 20 feet exposed.

Lithology: shale; sandstone

Coffeyville and Checkerboard Formations or Checkerboard Limestone (Phanerozoic | Paleozoic | Carboniferous Pennsylvanian-Middle) at surface, covers 1 % of this area

ENID- "Coffeyville Formation" is mainly shale interbedded with fine-to medium-grained sandstone. Locally formation contains thin coal seams. Thickness ranges from 175 to 470 feet (50 to 140 m). Underlying "Checkerboard Limestone" is crystalline limestone 2 to 15 feet (1 to 5 m) thick. TULSA- "Coffeyville Formation," shale and thin-bedded sandstone. "Checkerboard Formation," limestone and some shale. OKLAHOMA CITY- "Coffeyville Formation," mainly shale interbedded with fine- to medium-grained sandstone locally containing chert and limestone conglomerate and thin coal seams; thickness, 150 to 470 feet. Underlying "Checkerboard Limestone," crystalline limestone 2.5 to 5 feet thick.

Lithology: shale; sandstone; limestone; conglomerate; coal

Senora Formation (Phanerozoic | Paleozoic | Carboniferous Pennsylvanian-Middle) at surface, covers 23 % of this area

TULSA- Shale with thin and lenticular sandstone, minor limestone, and coal. OKLAHOMA CITY- Mainly fine-grained micaceous sandstone and shale locally containing coal beds. Thickness ranges from about 500 to 950 feet. FORT SMITH- Shale, sandstone, and thin coal seams. ARDMORE-SHERMAN- Shale, gray, and light-brown medium-grained sandstone; thickness, 150 to 500 feet, decreasing southwestward. Subdivided into lower sandstone, 350 feet thick, and upper shale, 150 feet thick.

Lithology: sandstone; shale; limestone; coal

Seminole Formation (Phanerozoic | Paleozoic | Carboniferous Pennsylvanian-Middle) at surface, covers 4 % of this area

TULSA- Shale, sandstone, and thin coal beds. OKLAHOMA CITY- Chert conglomerate, shale, and fine-grained sandstone containing coal seams in upper part locally. Thickness ranges from 100 to 375 feet. FORT SMITH- Sandy shale, sandstone, and thin coal seams. ARDMORE-SHERMAN- Shale, gray-green, with buff fine-grained sandstones, chert conglomerates, and limy sandstones; thickness, about 120 feet. (Upper Franks Conglomerate)

Lithology: shale; sandstone; conglomerate; coal