History of Texas, Together with a Biographical History of Milam, Williamson, Bastrop, Travis, Lee and Burleson Counties. Page: 182
[7], iv-vii, [2], 10-826, [2] p., [56] leaves of plates : ill., ports. ; 28 cm.View a full description of this book.
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A
182 HISTORY OF TEXAS.
permost Carboniferous, amounting in all to
2,000 or 3,000 feet, or even more in places.
If there be any other hope for an artesian
water supply in this region, the catchment
aret must be either in the pre-Carboniferous
rocks of the central mineral region and the
Wichita mountains or in the Guadaloupe and
connected ranges. That such a catchmnent
area exists on the south is fully proedI by
the powerful springs at Lampasas and in San
Saba county, all of which lave their origin
below the rocks of Carboniferous age. Some
of these springs, such as the Lampasas, have
their vent through rocks of this period, but
they belong to the very lowest strata, and
the temperature of the water proves that it
comes from still greater depths. All such
water is highly mineralized, but much of it
seems suitable for general uses after exposure
to the air has dispelled the sulphuretted hydrogen.
Others of these springs, like that
at Cherokee, San Saba county, spring through
rocks below the Carboniferous, and these furnish
water of an excellent quality. The dip
of tliese rocks is much greater than thle overlying
Carboniferous, and the water supply
would therefore be rapidly carried beyond
the depths of ordinary artesian borings. The
conditions of outcropping strata are similar
in the Wichita mountains to those of Llano
and San Saba counties, but we have no such
evidence in. the way of springs to prove their
value, and no boring has been carried far
enough to test the matter, although preparations
are now under way to do so. No rocks
of similar age have been observed in the
Guadaloupes. We must therefore conclude
that while the artesian conditions of the central
basin are not unfavorable, the probabilities
are against securing an adequate supply
of water sufficiently free from mineral matter
to be of use for general purposes, unless itbe from the sandstones of the Guadaloupe
mountains, which would require sinking to
impracticable depths in most places. All exceptions
will be of purely local extent and
will require much local topographic and geological
work for their designation.
There still remains the area of the Staked
Plains formation to be discussed, but our
knowledge of its geology is too limited to
permit anything but the most general statement.
The upper portion of these plains is
composed of strata of later Tertiary or possibly
Quaternary age, underlaid by a congloinerate
and sandstone of earlier date than the
Trinity sands, dipping southeast. It is this
bed that furnishes the surface water of the
plains, and from it gush the headwaters that
forIn the Colorado, Brazos, and Red rivers.
The beds underlying this are probably Permian
on the southern border, but newer formations
may intervene toward the north. It
is possible that this conglomerate bed may
yield artesian water near the western border
of the State, and it is said that one such
well has been secured. It is the opinion of
the State Geologist, however, based on such
knowledge as he can obtain, that the
probabilities of artesian water on the plains
are rather unfavorable than otherwise. It.
will require a considerable amount of work
in western New Mexico to decide the matter
finally.
The well at Pecos City most probably belongs
to the series newer than that described
under the Grand prairie region, and therefore
gives no clue to the area north of it.
The trans-Pecos mountain district from the
Guadaloupe mountains to the Rio Grande
consists of numerous mountain ranges and
detached peaks which rise from comparatively
level plains. These plains are composed of
loose material which has been derived from182
HISTOY OPTEXAS.
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History of Texas, Together with a Biographical History of Milam, Williamson, Bastrop, Travis, Lee and Burleson Counties. (Book)
Book containing a brief overview of the state of Texas and more specific focus on six specific counties, with extensive biographical sketches about persons related to the history of those places. An alphabetical index of persons who are included follows the table of contents at the front of the book.
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Lewis Publishing Company. History of Texas, Together with a Biographical History of Milam, Williamson, Bastrop, Travis, Lee and Burleson Counties., book, 1893; Chicago, Illinois. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth29785/m1/187/: accessed April 27, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Special Collections.