Revised Upper Devonian and Lower Mississippian Stratigraphic Nomenclature in Kansas

Abstract

As revised here, the Chattanooga Shale of Kansas includes the basal Misener Sandstone Member overlain by informal lower, middle, and upper shale members. Present only in the subsurface, this formation underlies most of the eastern two-thirds of the state. Most of the Chattanooga Shale is Devonian in age, although the uppermost part may be Early Mississippian. The Misener Sandstone Member has an erratic distribution and is usually less than 1 m (3.3 ft) in thickness. The lower shale member is present only in south-central Kansas and is less than 15 m (49.5 ft) thick. The middle and upper shale members can be traced throughout much of the area of Chattanooga subcrop, and their combined thickness can be more than 76 m (250.8 ft). A lenticular limestone bed is present near the base of the upper shale member in central Kansas, and limestone and dolomite beds occur within the upper parts of both the middle and upper shale members in northeastern Kansas. Ferruginous oolites are present in the upper shale member in northeastern Kansas, near the contact with the overlying Mississippian carbonates. Sometimes called the Kinderhook Shale, the Chattanooga Shale of Kansas is equivalent to the Woodford Shale of Oklahoma, Texas, and New Mexico.