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HOUSTON

GEOLOGICAL

SOCIETY

BULLETIN 1958 - 1959 HOUSTON, TEXAS

O F F I C E R S

R A L P H E. T A Y L O R . P R E S I D E N T

J A C K W. C R A I E . 1ST V l C E P R E S I D E N T

E D D R . T U R N E R . J R . . Z N O V l C E P R E S I D E N T

C U R T I S C . F R A N K S . SECRETARY

A U S T I N D. B R I X E Y . JR.. TREASURER

A U B R E Y H. R A B E N S B U R G . EX-OFFICIO

A D V I S O R Y C O M M I T T E E

A L B E R T M. T D L B E R T

J A M E S A . W H E E L E R

S P O N S O R S

This BULLETIN i s made possible by the cooperation of the companies whose names a r e listed on the following pages.

SUPPORT YOUR SPONSORS

MAGNET COVE BARIUM CORPORATION

ADVANCED EXPLORATION COMPANY

OTIS ENGINEERING CORPORATION

Volume 1 No. 2 October, 1958

SECOND REGULAR MEETING - OCTOBER 13th

The second regular meet ing fo r the 1958-59 y e a r wil l be held on Monday evening, October 13th, on the 10th f loor of the Houston Club. Social hour wi l l begin a t 5:15 p.m., dinner wil l be a t 6:00 p.m.

MR. GERALD H. WESTBY, AAPG distinguished l ec tu re r and pres ident of Se ismograph Service Corporat ion, Tulsa, Oklahoma, wil l speak on "Geophysics and St ra t igraphic P rob lems . 'I This paper wil l i l lus t ra te graphical ly how the d isappearance of ce r t a in ref lect ions has been used successful ly to m a p the edges of s t ra t igraphic t r aps .

Mr. Westby's paper includes a descr ip t ion of new methods and machines which br ing old se ismograph r eco rds back to life in the s e a r c h f o r s t ra t igraphic t r aps .

KARL F. DALLMUS TO SPEAK AT NOVEMBER MEETING

On Monday, November 10, Mr. K a r l F. Dallmus, f o r m e r l y with Creole Pe t ro l eum Corporat ion i n Caracas , Venezuela, wi l l p re sen t one of the m a j o r pape r s of this y e a r - "Mechanics of Basin Evolution and Its Relat ion to t he Habitat of Oil in the Basin. l 1

Until h i s r e t i r emen t in 1957, Mr . Dallmus was Head of R e s e a r c h and Special Studies Section of Creole. H i s paper r epor t s on exhaus- tive and detai led studies made during th is period. Mr . Dallrnusl tour i s sponsored by the AAPG Distinguished Lecture Committee.

Abst rac t of Gordon Atwater ' s l ec tu re a t l a s t meeting wil l be found under Scient if ic Notes.

MILWHITE MUD COMPANY

THE AMERICAN PHOTO COPY & LOG SERVICE

ANDERSON AND COOKE

BANK OF THE SOUTHWEST

WELEX, INCORPORATED

GEOPHYSICAL ASSOCIATES INTERNATIONAL

C O M M I T T E E R E P O R T S

Placement

In spi te of some success in placing men, t h e r e i s a n inc rease in eve ry classif icat ion of the i r listing of applicants, which now stands:

8 advanced degree - experienced (1 to 8 y e a r s ) in geology 13 advanced degree - no experience 19 Bachelor ' s degree - experienced (1 to 14 y e a r s ) in geology 59 Bachelor ' s degree - no experience 16 Bachelor ' s degree - experienced (1 to 12 y e a r s ) geophysics 8 Bachelor ' s degree - experienced (1 to 5 y e a r s ) logging -

123 Total r eg i s t e r ed with Committee

The committee i s working now on seve ra l probable positions but they f ee l that the m e m b e r s can give s t i l l m o r e vigorous support. Be s u r e that everyone who i s even considering hir ing, goes over the l i s t with Glenn Tague of Cit ies Serv ice , John Clements at Genera l Geo- physical, o r M r s . Howe at the HGS office.

Publishing

C a r t e r Robinson r epor t s that Austin Brixey, Jack Craig, Ralph Taylor , A1 Tolbert , and J i m Wheeler did yeoman se rv i ce in complet- ing the i r l i s t s f o r soliciting advert is ing under C la rk Edgecomb's di- rection. Some l i s t s w e r e not f inished due to i l lness and absence f r o m town. If your company's adver t i sement was not sol ici ted, please con- tac t C la rk Edgecomb a t WA 8-2511.

EUROPEAN IMPORT COMPANY

I N DEXTER EXPLORATION COMPANY,

HARRELL DRILLING COMPANY

INC.

HARRY T. BRYANT DRILLING COMPANY

MICHAEL T. HALBOUTY

TAYLOR EXPLORATION COMPANY

Entertainment

H A L L O W E E N D A N C E

SYLVAN BEACH ED GERLACH

Friday, October 10th

8 - 12 p.m. Semi-formal

$8.00 per couple; $9.00 after noon on Fr iday, October 10th

NOTE: Buses will leave Meyerland Parking Lot a t 7:00 p.m. . . . NOT a t 7:30 p.m. a s shown on the invitation.

Tickets for sale by:

Rick Marches seau - Union of California - Prudential Building The T e r r a Club - Alice Fe l scher Sam Udden - Continental Oil Co. - Texas National Bank Building John High - Gulf Oil Co. - Mellie Esperson Building Kar l Schneidau - Austral Oil Exploration Co. - San Jacinto Bldg. John W. Cox - P a n American Pet roleum Corp. - Esperson Bldg. James Cri tz - Superior Oil Co. - Oil & Gas Building Horace Steele - Humble Oil Co. - Room 791-D Humble Building B. F. Winborn - United Core - 3815 Buffalo Speedway M. Allen Reagan, J r . - Brazos Oil & Gas - F i r s t City Nat'l Bank Raymond E. Fai rchi ld - Trunkline Gas Co. - Bank of Commerce Ben E. Gaither - Room 5 17 - 7 11 Main Street Thomas D. Burke - John Mecom - 1100 Houston Club Building W. A. Poe - Lyons & McCord - 1430 Bank of Southwest Building

Field T r i p

E. H. Rainwater repor ts that plans f o r a one-day strat igraphic field t r ip for November a r e under discussion, a s well a s a visi t to a sa l t mine for sometime next year .

GINTHER, WARREN AND COMPANY

BERG GEOPHYSICAL COMPANY

RINEHART OIL NEWS COMPANY

RAYMOND D. REYNOLDS

HARRISON EQUIPMENT COMPANY

SEISMOGRAPH SERVICE CORPORATION

Studv Course

The Study Course Committee wishes to inform the Society of the present plans in regard to the Field Studies. These studies will en- deavor to cover a s many of the various types of fields (sal t domes, fault-line enclosures, s trat igraphic t raps , etc.) in Railroad Commis- sion Distr ict No. 3 a s possible.

Each study will consist of approximately a two o r three page r e - port, complete with s t ructura l map o r maps, c r o s s sections, s t ra t i - graphic section, etc. It i s planned to prepare these studies and pub- lish them in a volume s imi lar to the Bureau of Economic Geology Publication No. 5716 entitled "Occurrence of Oil & Gas in West Texas. I '

SO a s to a ssure uniformity, arrangements have been made for base maps , drafting and a standardized fo rm for the report .

In many instances, al l of the necessary data o r information i s readily available in the files of some company o r individual who has done resea rch on a part icular field. A field study by a geologist of such a company would be greatly simplified. His task would be a mat- t e r of assimilating and compiling mate r i a l s o that i t could be properly presented in a paper.

No information will be requested f r o m a company that would be considered confidential o r that might be detrimental to that company's leasing o r development program. However, information that has been released through the Railroad Commission Hearings, t rade journals, periodicals, etc. would be solicited.

The following i s a l i s t of fields which has been recommended by the Study Course Committee a s being fair ly representative:

Aldine, Aldine North, Alvin, Amelia, Anahuac, Bailey's P r a i r i e ,

TEXAS INSTRUMENTS INCORPORATED

GRAVITY METER EXPLORATION COMPANY

BEN A. ELMDAHL- ENGINEERING

CARNES WEAVER DRILLING COMPANY

WELL INSTRUMENT DEVELOPING COMPANY

TECHN I FAX CORPORATION

Barb-Mag, Batson, Bay City E a s t , Beaumont West , Bender, Be rna rd Eas t , Bernard We st , Blessing Eas t , Bonney, Caplen, Cedar Point , Cheek North, Chenango, Chestervi l le , Citrus Grove, Clam Lake, Clay Creek, Clear Lake, Clodine, Clodine North, College P o r t , Columbus, Damon Mound, Danbury, Durkee, Dyersdale , E l m Bayou, Fa i rbanks , Faith-Mag, F ig Ridge, F i s h e r ' s Reef, F ive Corne r s , F r a n k s , Fu l - shea r , Genoa, Gist , Big Hill , Hamman, Hankamer , Hankamer South, Hardin, High Island, Hitchcock, Huff smith, Hull, Indian Hi l l s , J e r - gins, Kuhlman, LaBelle , Lake Creek , League-City Hts., Livingston, Lovells Lake, Manor Lake, Markham, Martha, Merchant , Mercy , Mercy West, Midfields, Moss Hill , New Ulm, Nona Mills , Orange, Orcha rd (Moore ' s ) , Oys te r Bayou, P o r t Neches, P o r t Neches North, Raccoon Bend, Rankin, Raywood, Red F i s h Reef, Rotherwood, Sabine T r a m , Saratoga, Satsuma, Schwab (Ace), Seabreeze , Segno, Sheridan, Si lsbee, S i l sbee West, Sour Lake, Spanish Camp, Spindle Top, Spring, Spr inger , Stowell, Sugar Valley, Tidehaven, Village Mil ls , Village Mil ls Eas t , Webster (Friendswood), Winnie, Withers Magnet.

Anyone in t e re s t ed in making a study of one of the above f ields p lease contact Dick Hohlt, S a m Udden o r Jack Craig. Also, if you would like to make a s tudy of a f ield not shown in the above l i s t please notify one of the above committee m e m b e r s .

New Committee Members

Ballot Counting (A. G. Gueymard, Chairman) J a m e s H. Be r ry , J r . P e t e W. Cawthon, J r .

Constitution Study (Ben A. Elmdahl , Chairman) John L. P. Campbell Jack Colle Howard H. L e s t e r John Nicholson

SAN JACINTO DRILLING COMPANY-J. P. PETKAS

CAMBE LOG LIBRARY TIDELANDS EXPLORATION COMPANY

QUINTANA PETROLEUM CORPORATION

PERFORATING GUNS ATLAS CORPORATION

PERNIE BAILEY, DRILLING CONTRACTOR

Directory (Jack W. Cra ig , Chai rman) Reece B e r r y Norman Ruback H. Grady Tray lo r

Ente rtainrnent (B. F. Winborn, Jr . , Chai rman) K a r l Schneidau

Fie ld T r i p

P r o g r a m

(E. H. Rainwater, Chairman) Howard G. Schoenike Henryk B. Stenzel Char les W. Stuckey, J r . Lawrence J. Vit t rup

(Edd Turne r , Chairman) Richard P e t e Akkerman H a r r y L. F r a n k Marion M. Hooks E . F. Humphries John J. W. Roger s

N E W S O F M E M B E R S

M a l c o l m E . B e n n e t t i s now with the Hur t Oil Co.

John F. Barnes was in St. Luke ' s Hospital with a h e a r t attack, but i s probably convalescing at home now.

B. C. Phi l l ips was t r a n s f e r r e d to the Phi l l ips office in Ba r t l e s - ville a s Regional Geologist. H i s place a s Division Geologist in Houston was filled by Rober t C. Char les f r o m the Midland office.

E. J. Coel i s repor ted i n Methodist Hospital f o r surgery .

EDGAR TOBlN AERIAL SURVEYS

SlNCLAlR REFINING COMPANY

HALLIBURTON OIL WELL CEMENTING COMPANY

WILSON SUPPLY COMPANY

BAROID WELL LOGGING SERVICE

OFFSHORE EXPLORATION GROUP, INC.

Dean Hecht i s now with Willard Gill Pe t ro l eum.

David Von T r e s s was t r a n s f e r r e d to the Texas Co. office in Cor- pus Chr is t i on August 15th and m a r r i e d on August 25th.

W. Bruce Barbour h a s moved h i s offices f r o m the Melrose Build- ing to 91 1 Bank of the Southwest Building.

Hugh G. Walk h a s been t r a n s f e r r e d to the Texas Co. New Orleans office.

John C. Worley h a s been t r a n s f e r r e d by the Texas Co. f r o m Corpus Chr is t i to Houstonand wil l be on ou r next l i s t of new m e m b e r s .

F r i e n d s a r e glad to s e e what the surgeons left of Cliff Bowles barging around s o vigorously.

Bill P e t e r s e n won second p r i ze i n the e s s a y contest on the P o r t of Houston.

New M e m b e r s

J a m e s W. Dowden F r e d H. Drews, Jr. Albright E. F e r r e l l William J. G a r r i s o n Arch W. Helton Louis D. Hi l lyer J. C. Johnston Louis H. Luker t Mar ion L. McKay, Jr . Lipscomb V. Mar t in D. D. Moore L. A. Mur ray , J r .

Lion Oil Co. Humble Oil & Refining Co. Fa i rchi ld Aer ia l Surveys, Inc. Humble Oil & Refining Co. Hunt Oil Co. Shell Oil Co. P a n Amer ican Pe t ro l eum Corp. The Texas Company Sinclair Oil & Gas Co. Gulf Oil Corp. Se i smic Explorat ions, Inc. Humble Oil & Refining Co.

GOLDRUS DRILLING COMPANY

MIKE HICKS TOOLS & CEMENTING, INC.

UNITED GEOPHYSICAL CORPORATION

COASTAL GEOLOGICAL SERVICE

SPUR WELL SERVICING COMPANY

MONTROSE STORES, INC.

New Member s (cont 'd)

John C. O ' L e a r y Garne t W. Ol iver Cha r l e s L. Pence Wil l iam B. Rober t s Dwight H. Seely, S r . X. T . Stoddard Rober t M. Swords J a m e s T. Thaemar

Houston Oil F ie ld Mater ia l Co., Inc. Standard Oil Co. of Texas Humble Oil & Refining Co. P a n Ame r ican Pe t ro l eum Corp. Sohio Pe t ro l eum Co. Duval Sulphur & Po ta sh P a n Amer ican Pe t ro l eum Corp. Humble Oi l & Refining Co.

N O T I C E ! ! N O T I C E ! ! N O T I C E ! !

D E A D L I N E F O R D U E S

The deadline f o r payment of 1958-59 dues was October l s t , so if you have not paid your dues , p lease m a i l your check in the amount of $4. 50, made payable to the Houston Geological Society, to 234 E s p e r s o n Building, Houston 2, Texas .

P l e a s e enc lose the Direc tory information reques ted in the f i r s t notice. If you have mi sp l aced th is shee t , you m a y have another by calling M r s . Howe a t FAir fax 3-82 11.

STATEWIDE PLAT SERVICE, AUSTIN

INDEPENDENT EXPLORATION COMPANY

EMRACO PRODUCTION LABORATORIES, INC.

BRUCE M. THOMAS DRILLING COMPANY

RESEARCH EXPLORATIONS, INC.

GREAT LAKES PETROLEUM SERVICE

A N N O U N C E M E N T S O F I N T E R E S T

United Fund Dr ive

The 1959 United Fund Campaign, covering 65 d i f f e r en t char i tab le , hea l th and we l f a r e agenc ies , t akes p lace October 6-24 f o r m e m b e r s of the geological p rofess ion . Wayne Bowman and J a c k Colle, Cha i rman and Co-cha i rman of the P e t r o l e u m & Geological Sect ion of the Engi - nee r s ' Unit t h i s y e a r , have developed an excel lent organizat ion. Mem- b e r s i n p r iva t e p r ac t i ce can expec t a ca l l f r o m the i r cap ta ins .

All of us , i t i s believed, a r e a w a r e of the r e a l need i n t h i s rap id- ly expanding a r e a of the s e r v i c e s United Fund Agencies provide. All c i t izens a r e being u r g e d to give s e r i o u s cons idera t ion to a "fair s h a r e " pledge to the United Fund th i s yea r . Our m e m b e r s a r e expected to do t he i r ful l pa r t .

Oil P r o g r e s s Week - October 12 - 18

The commi t t ee of the Chamber of C o m m e r c e f o r Houston Oil P r o g r e s s Week h a s a r r a n g e d fo r panel g roups of o i l m e n t o v i s i t the High Schools of the ci ty during the week. Some of o u r m e m b e r s wil l be with t h e s e groups .

MEETINGS AND NEWS O F OTHER SOCIETIES

The Gulf Coas t Assoc ia t ion of Geological Soc ie t ies

Th i s i s the month of the Corpus C h r i s t i meet ing. The Assoc ia t ion and the Gulf Coas t Sect ion of the S. E.P.M. a r e both p rope r ly proud of t he i r l i s t s of pape r s . Check t o be s u r e you have made your r e s e r - vat ions.

HOUSTON OIL FIELD MATERIAL COMPANY

JOHNSTON TESTERS, INC.

ROGERS GEOPHYSICAL COMPANY

CARDINAL DUPLICATING SERVICE

BROUSSARD EXPLORATION COMPANY, INC.

SOUTHWESTERN INDUSTRIAL ELECTRONICS

Geophysical Society of Houston

The annual golf tournament and barbecue was held Fr iday , Sept. 12, a t the Texaco Country Club. Buddy Se l l e r s won the Peanuts P a l - m e r Trophy with a low g r o s s of 80. Bob Mart in had low net score .

The next meeting will be a luncheon, Oct. 20, a t the Rice Hotel. John Daly will speak on "So Now You Have It On Tape."

The GSH annual cocktail par ty i s s e t fo r Dec. 15, hours 7-9, i n the Gulf Coast Suite of the Houston Club.

Houston Mineralogical & Geochemical Club

On Oct. 14 a t 8:00 p.m., in Room 106 of the Geology Building, Rice Institute, P a u l Weaver will present "Diagenesis of Underground Waters ." The emphas is wil l be on wa te r s of intermediate composition and the i r possible use.

The T e r r a Club

All October afternoons find the Cocktail Hour with sweet songs of Janet Smith with Bill Gannon a t the piano. Make reserva t ions for the " T e r r a Club Special" to any o r a l l of the football games a t Rice Sta- dium, October 4, l l , 18 & 25. Music and cocktails a t 5:00, buffet a t 6:00, bus leaves a t 7:15 ( f ree re f reshments both ways) . Doorman to take your c a r . Buffet and bus t r i p - $4.00 p e r person.

Houston Engineering & Scientific Society ( fo rmer ly Houston Engineers Club)

The Society invites the m e m b e r s of HGS to inspect the expanded faci l i t ies a t 2615 Fannin S t r ee t , and to apply f o r membersh ip before the initiation f e e i s ra i sed .

TIMBERLAND EXPLORATION COMPANY

HYCALOG, INC.

SPERRY-SUN WELL SURVEYING COMPANY

TEX-TUBE, INCORPORATED

FAILING EXPLORATION & DRILLING COMPANY

GEOPHYSICAL SERVICE, INC.

Texas Academy of Science

The annual meet ing wil l be held Dec. 11-13, a t Baylor Medical School, i n Houston. T h e r e wil l be s e v e r a l s e s s ions on the Ea r th Sciences. Short pape r s , no m o r e than 20 minutes f o r presentat ion, a r ewe lcomed f r o m non-members a s well a s m e m b e r s of the Academy. Suggested t i t les should be sent to Horace R. Blank, Dept. of Geol. & Geophys., Texas A&M, College Station, by Oct. 15th (i. e. next week! ) . Geologists who have intended to join the Academy should take this op- portunity to do so.

Conference on Geology of Texas

As p a r t of the 75th Year Celebrat ion of the University, the De- par tment of Geology of the Universi ty of Texas invites a l l geologists to this conference on F r iday , Oct. 31st, f r o m 9 to 5, in Ba t t t s Audi- tor ium a t the Universi ty in Austin.

Society of Explorat ion Geophysicis ts

The 28th annual meeting wil l be held a t the Gunter Hotel in San Antonio, October 13- 16. The p rog ram l i s t s a number of pape r s that wil l be of i n t e re s t to geologists without much geophysical background.

Th i rd Annual P e t r o l e u m Conference on Well Logging Interpretat ions

a t Radford Auditorium, McMurray College, Abilene, on Oct. 15 - 17

The Amer ican Society f o r Metals

A twelve-week lec ture s e r i e s , "Survey of the Metal Sciences, I '

will be given in the Phys i c s Amphitheater of Rice Institute a t 8:00 p.m. on Mondays, beginning October 13th.

MAXIM'S DINING ROOM

SEISMIC EXPLORATIONS, INC.

CBS WORKOVER COMPANY

BANK OF TEXAS

ROBERT H. RAY COMPANY

SCHLUMBERGER WELL SURVEYING CORPORATION

S C I E N T I F I C N O T E S

F r o m P a u l Weaver

Many HGS m e m b e r s r emember the visi t of Alfred Bentz to the Gulf Coast 25 yea r s ago, and his edi torship of the valuable re ference text: Oil and Tectonics in Northwest Germany, published in 1949. Volume 74 of the Geologische Jahrbuch, recently a r r ived , i s dedicated to Dr . Bentz on h i s 60th birthday, and contains 37 a r t i c l e s which were published separa te ly in July, 1957. As usual in m e m o r i a l volumes, m o s t a r t i c l e s a r e sho r t and the subjects selected f r o m many different provinces. Of those with a German sa l t dome theme, t he re a r e sev- e r a l of par t icu lar in teres t , viz:

A. Equal - t ime Varves in Zechstein No. 2 Anhydrite, by Ger - h a r d Richter -Bernburg . Two co res , each about 40 inches long, f r o m two wells about 11 m i l e s apa r t , show m o r e than 600 l a y e r s in the an- hydri te with a s good corre la t ion a s h a s been found in modern t r e e rings. Remember the laminae in the anhydrite a t O r l a in the Dela- ware Basin.

B. Concerning tectonics and s t ra t igraphy of the oilfields on the northwest side of the Gifhorn Trough, by F r a n z Hecht , Hans-Adolf Hedemann, and F r i t z Kabelac, i s planned to show that the apparently v e r y random occur rences of oi l i n s t ra t igraphic t r aps and around sa l t domes fa l l into a pa t te rn which r e l a t e s them to s t r and lines of different t imes within the trough.

C. Tectonics and petroleum geological s tudies in the Lehr te a r e a , by F r a n z Bettenstaedt and Curt Dietz, desc r ibes the way dr i l l - - ing deeper and f a r the r out f r o m this sa l t m a s s has shown not l e s s than 15 d iscordances in the subsurface.

D. In the Gulf Coast we have seen c r a t e r s on shallow sa l t

SUPERIOR OIL TOOL SERVICE CO., INC.

CORE LABORATORIES, INC.

TEXAS-LOUISIANA ELECTRIC LOG SERVICE

EDWARDS & BISSETT, INC., DRILLING CONTRACTORS

GENERAL GEOPHYSICAL COMPANY

UNITED CORE, INC.

domes develop in our t ime a t Sour Lake, Blue Ridge, Moore ' s and Choctaw. The oldest r eco rded one on a s a l t dome i s the movement a t Luneburg, wr i t ten up in this volume by Josef Niedermayer , under the t i t le : Introduction to the Geology of Lnneburg sa l t dome, with spec ia l notice of the subsidence phenomena. The re i s a s m a l l h i l l i n th is city called the Kalkberg, possibly because a t the t ime i t was named t h e r e was no minera logis t around to cal l the rock "gypsum". Luneburg was an important t rading center , and had a bishopric collecting t i thes on sa l t about a thousand y e a r s ago; obviously the church knew the savor of s a l t before the ea r th scient is t .

As I was prepar ing these notes f r o m the Jahrbuch, I was reminded how impor tant technical (not college) knowledge i s . F o r fu r the r r e - flections on th is importance, s e e S. A. Wilde: Scientific Russ ian: I ts Study and Trans la t ion , in Amer ican Scientis t for September , 1958. As to Russ ian technical l i t e r a tu re , I saw in the new s e r i e s , Pe t ro l eum Geology, No. 2A, the words "supporting we l l s1 ' used a s the English t rans la t ion f o r what the Russ ians m e a n a s " s t r a t tes t s" . Let u s hope that m o r e s t r a t t e s t s , fo r us in this country, do actual ly support the ideas we had when we located them.

F r o m E. H. Rainwater

Recent Publicat ions of In teres t

Cre taceous Shelf Sediments of Mississippi , Miss. Geol. Survey Bull. 85, 1958, by F r e d e r i c F r a n c i s Mellen. (Available f r o m the Miss . Geological Survey, Universi ty of Miss iss ippi . )

This bulletin of 112 pages i s wr i t ten by the f o r e m o s t authori ty on Miss iss ippi geology, who i s a l s o wel l acquaintedwith the modern ideas of sedimentat ion, and thus can co r rec t ly i n t e rp re t the depositional en- vironment of ancient sediments .

Mellen i s concerned in th is paper only with the Upper Cre taceous

HOUSTON BLUE PRINT & STATIONERY COMPANY

LANE-WELLS COMPANY, A DIVISION OF DRESSER, INC.

BILBO-REDDING DRILLING COMPANY, INC.

HUMBLE OIL & REFINING COMPANY

BASS DRILLING COMPANY

WILSON STATIONERY & PRINTING CO.

deposi ts , which c rop out o r underlie 99 percent of the s tate , and which have produced m o r e than four-fifths of Mis s i s s ipp i ' s oil and gas. The paper i s fu r the r r e s t r i c t ed to the nor thern half of the s ta te , north of the Pickens -Gilbertown fault sys t em, which i s in terpre ted to have been a s t ruc tu ra l hinge line during the l a t e r pa r t of Upper Cretaceous.

No hydrocarbons have yet been produced f r o m the Cretaceous deposi ts of this "shelf" a r ea , but the author outlines the sedimentation conditions which permi t ted accumulation of porous shallow m a r i n e and strand-l ine sands , shallow mar ine m a r l s and chalks, and lagoonal and estuarine clays. He concludes f r o m this in terpre ta t ion of depositional h is tory , f r o m many known occur rences of solid hydrocarbons in the deposi ts , and f r o m gas shows in s e v e r a l wells that the porous Upper Cre taceous sands of this a r e a v e r y likely have commerc ia l accumulations of oil and gas. The data and ideas in this r epor t a r e of g rea t value to geologists and geophysicists who a r e in teres ted in the Cre taceous of the e a s t e r n Gulf Coast.

F o r t y pages of the Bulletin a r e devoted to a bibliography of papers concerned mainly with Cre taceous geology of this a r e a .

Bibliography of North Amer ican Geology, 1955, U. S. Geological Sur- vey Bull. 1065, 1958, by Ruth Reese King and o thers . ( F o r s a l e by the Superintendent of Documents, U. S. Government Pr in t ing Office, Washington 25, D. C. P r i c e $1.50. )

This i s the la tes t bibliography of North Amer ican geology by the U. S. Geol. Survey. Geologists a r e grea t ly indebted to the f ede ra l Survey f o r compiling and publishing such ma te r i a l , which m a k e s i t possible to l e a r n quickly what geological r epo r t s a r e published on any a r e a o r subject in this continent, the West Indies, Hawaii, Guam, and o ther island possess ions . The r e fe rences a r e l is ted f i r s t alphabeti- cally by author and then by subject. 511 pages a r e needed to cover the m a t e r i a l published, most ly in 1955.

POPE GEOPHYSICAL COMPANY

ZINGERY MAPS, AIR PHOTOGRAPH DIVISION

M. L. RANDALL

BIG "6" DRILLING COMPANY

DOWELL, DIVISION DOW CHEMICAL COMPANY

NANCE EXPLORATION COMPANY

The following U. S. Geol. Survey bulletins on the bibliography of North Amer ican geology cover the period f r o m 1875 to 1950: Nos. 746, 747, 823, 937, and 1049.

F r o m Wilbur C. Holland

Are You Keeping Up With the U. S. G. S. Publicat ions ?

The United Sta tes Geological Survey publishes monthly a check l i s t of publications and m a p s i s sued by the Survey during the preceding month. By getting your name on the mail ing l i s t f o r this f r e e publication you can keep informed a s to what bulletins, professional papers , oi l and gas investigation m a p s , topographic m a p s , etc., we re published by the Survey during the pas t month. P e r h a p s they have just i s sued a r epor t on an a r e a in which you a r e in teres ted . This c i r cu la r i s avai l- able on r eques t f r o m the U. S. Government Pr in t ing Office, Division of Publ ic Documents, Washington 25, D. C . , under the t i t le "New Publicat ions of the Geological Survey. I t

Writing Geological Repor ts

Does wri t ing geological r epo r t s , l e t t e r s , and m e m o s give you a s much trouble a s i t does the r e s t of u s ? Should you use "crop out" o r " o ~ t c r o p ' ~ ? Is "pre-Cambrian" o r P r e c a m b r i a n " p r e f e r r e d ? The U. S. Geological Survey h a s recently published the fifth edition of t he i r "Suggestions to Authors of the Repor ts of the United States Geological Survey. 'I Although the book was p repa red p r imar i ly f o r geologists submitting pape r s to the Survey f o r publication, we could a l l profi t by a carefu l study of i t s contents. This 228-page book, bound in h a r d cover, i s avai lable f r o m the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Gov- e rnment Pr in t ing Office, Washington 25, D. C., a t $1.75 pe r copy.

Geology of Nor thern Mexico

The ent i re September - October 1957 i s sue of the Boletin de l a

NlXON BLUE PRINT LOG SERVICE

RALPH B. CANTRELL

APACHE EXPLORATION COMPANY, INC.

L. L. RIDGWAY COMPANY

OTIS RUSSELL DRILLING COMPANY, BAY CITY

Asociacion Mexicana de Geologos Pe t ro l e ros was devoted to an ar t ic le on the geology of nor thern Mexico. This a r t ic le , "Notas sob re l a geologia de Chihuahua" by J. C. Rami rez and F. Acevedo, p re sen t s (in Spanish) a detai led account of the s t ruc tu re and s t ra t igraphy of an a r e a just a c r o s s the r ive r f r o m Texas. The 187-page a r t i c l e i s pro- fusely i l lus t ra ted with 6 1 f igures , 7 cor re la t ion tab les , 6 s t ra t igraphic columns, and a l a rge - sca l e geologic map. It i s a ma jo r contribution to geologic knowledge of a little-known a r e a and should help to tie together some of the knotty problems along the Rio Grande.

A b s t r a c t

"NATURE O F GROWTH O F LOUISIANA SALT DOMES

AND ITS E F F E C T ON PETROLEUM ACCUMULATION"

By Gordon Atwater and McLain J. F o r e m a n

(Published by pe rmis s ion of the A. A.P. G.)

Intensive and deep drilling on p iercement s a l t domes of southern Louisiana h a s yielded a grea t amount of new information on these fea- tures . These data demonst ra te that many sa l t domes exhibit variat ions in s t ruc tu ra l configuration which depar t considerably f r o m older concepts of sa l t dome growth and f r o m re su l t s of s ca l e model s tudies. Some of these s t ruc tu ra l abnormali t ies have played a n important role in the accumulation of petroleum.

Detailed studies indicate that the growth of s a l t domes in this province h a s been charac ter ized by intermit tent periods of movement. F u r t h e r m o r e , evidence now indicates that, in some cases , upward movement of sa l t f r o m the deeply-buried sa l t m a s s h a s var ied i n lo- cation a s wel l a s in t ime. In some of these c a s e s , e a r l y movements of portions of the parent s a l t m a s s formed low-relief s t ruc tu re s i n

which ear ly oil and gas accumulation took place. More recent growth of the present sa l t stock, peripherally located to the older s t ructure and intrusion, has formed new t raps of higher s t ructura l position into which the ea r l i e r accumulations of petroleum have migrated. In other cases , m o r e recent growth of the sa l t stocks has merely truncated the older s t ructures , disturbing them little, i f a t all. In these cases , the petroleum rese rves a r e s t i l l found in the "fossil" s t ructures , which have discordant relationships to the present sa l t m a s s .

In addition to the major shifts of loci of sal t intrusion, movement of the sa l t within the present shallow piercement plug has not been uniform throughout the plug. This i r regular i ty of upward flow i s dem- onstrated by the different s t ructura l positions of major flank segments, local unconfirmities onres t r i c t ed flank a r e a s , shallow salt spines and deep-seated shoulders on sa l t m a s s e s .

Shale sheath mater ia l , enveloping the sal t , i s observed, in some cases , to intrude the normal sediments, behaving a s does the sal t and forming an integral par t of the intrusive domal mater ia l .

It i s important to recognize that the configuration of the present shallow piercement sa l t stock reflects the combined effects of various localized sa l t movements. Moreover, the s t ructures created by intrusive sa l t (and accompanying shale) movements have been in ter - mittently a l tered by shifts in the locus of movement. Petroleum accumulations in some s t ructures have been transient in nature and the locations of present r e se rves represent only the result of the most recent adjustments. In other s t ruc tu res , petroleum accumulations represent " f ~ s s i l ' ~ fields which bear little relationship to the present sal t stock.

Examples of some of these phenomena associated with sal t dome growth a r e presented by studies of the Cote Blanche Island Dome, the Iowa Dome, the Lake Washington Dome, the Valentine Dome, and the

Weeks Island Dome. Each of these represents an important field and each i l lus t ra tes the controlling influence that i ts growth history has had on the accumulation of i t s petroleum reserves .

Application of concepts here in developed regarding the nature of sa l t dome growth should be considered in planning exploration pro- grams around the flanks of piercement sa l t domes, and may lead to reinvestigation of nearby a r e a s previously condemned a s occupying off -flank o r synclinal positions.

THE BULLETIN

As will have been seen f rom the Committee notices, there has been a great deal of h a r d work done, but i t i s doubtful whether anyone worked h a r d e r than the officers and executive committee members who contacted the adver t i sers that make the Bulletin and Social Hour possible. It i s suggested that now, before the Ladies ' pages a r e cut out to take home to the Better Half, the l i s t of sponsors on the top and bottom of the pages be read carefully. Think how much better i t would be, when a man says he i s with Schlumberger o r Lane Wells-Elgen, that instead of saying "Who on ear th i s that? ' I , you could say, "Oh, yes, I saw the name in the Bulletin. ' I

It i s a pleasure to draw attention to the back page where you will notice, in addition to chairmen l isted in the previous issue, that James Clark has taken the job of Publicity Manager and James Critz that of Assistant Editor of the Bulletin.

O N T H E D I S T A F F S I D E

Rhymin' i t up, and ' sayin ' i t fine Is E m m a ' s way of layin ' i t on the line. Now Ha l took E m m a to Holland with h i m To vociferize, geologize, a n ' bug the i r eyes . And a s a pinch-hi t ter , I lack h e r touch, But h e r e ' s the news - plain views - and such.

Enter ta inment

The Auxil iary 's f i r s t soc ia l of the y e a r wil l b the River Oaks coun t ry Club a t 10:30 a.m., Thursday, 0ct\66er 23. Mrs . J a m e s L. (Thelma) Ballard i s the cha i rman of the day - and

If you need sp i r i t Whether mi ld o r brac in ' , The coffee wil l have i t , So won' t you please has t en to R. S. V. P. JA 8-3558 m u s t know how many t h e r e wil l be.

News of Members

E m m a a n d H a l F i s k xttended the Four th Internat ional Congress on Carboniferous St ra t igraphy and Geology a t Hwerlen, Holland. On September 17, Dr. F i s k gave a paper entitled "Recent Miss iss ippi River Sedimentation and P e a t Accumulation. " The F i s k s toured I r e - land, England, F r a n c e , Belgium, Germany, and Austr ia . They w e r e a "touch of home" to Elaine Anderson, who i s studying a r t in Vienna.

Evelyn and Joe Shimek visi ted the i r son Joe in Germany, where h e i s s tat ioned with the Army. They a r e touring Germany, Switzer- land, and Belgium.

John and Louise Todd, and daughter Bernie, a r e in England. Dr. Todd i s attending "Urwick, O r r , and P a r t n e r s Business Management School ' ' in London, while Little Mis s Bernie i s at St. George Is School in Ascott . The Todds visi ted the Brusse l s Wor ld ' s F a i r , and toured Germany and F r a n c e , before going to London.

Young Knox Tyson, son of Mr. and M r s . A. Knox Tyson, recently

re turned f r o m two months in Europe. He was the only Houston r e p r e - sentative in the Exper iment in International Living program, and he lived with a Dutch family in Aalsmeer , Holland. Katherine and Knox, Sr . joined h i m a t the end of h i s s tay, and together they visi ted the F r i s i a n Is lands, F rance , Germany, and Belgium.

Now, a l l the above Should sure ly be Enough of that foreign f lavor E m m a promised we 'd savor. With 'Wey-nonnie -nonnie, and dilly-down-der ry, " Let ' s t u rn ou r thoughts to "Quaternary" !

'Quaternary , the newcomers ' auxil iary to the auxil iary, m e t a t the Houston Geophysical Club on Wednesday, September 17. They have approximately thirty-five m e m b e r s now. To qualify f o r m e m - bership, one m u s t have been in the Houston Geological Auxiliary l e s s than one year . Anyone in teres ted in joining "Quaternary" should con- tac t the membersh ip chai rman, Mrs . C. J. Mayhew a t P A 3-1290.

The Clos - - ing Line l !

During the month, if you should know Of any personals worth a publicity go, Jus t ca l l E m m a (JA4-8213) o r m e (JA 8-2969), And in the next Bulletin, i t will su re ly be.

Now, F a r e w e l l ! ... Until October 10th a t d e a r ole Sylvan, Where ghosts and witches and even bats, Will help us t u r n into r e a l Hep Cats !

. . . . Anile Anderson

O F F I C E R S

Pres ident ......................................... Ralph E . Taylor .................... C A 5-4411 . ........................ 1st V i c e Pres ident ............................ J a c k W Craig J A 6-3844

2nd V i c e President .............................. Edd R . Turner, J r ................... C A 8-9361

Secretary . Curt is C . Franks ...................... C A 4-2093

Treasurer - Aus t in D . Brixey , J r ............... C A 7-2181

COMMITTEE CHAIRMEN

Awards . . Henrv G . Guest ...................... Ballot Counting .................................. A . G . Gueymard .................... Boy Scouts ........................................ Douglas E . Bell .................... Consti tution Study .............................. Ben A . EJmdahJ .................... Convention Preparation .................... Ralph A . Dav i s ...................... Directory ................. . J a c k W . Craig ........................ Distribution o f Publications .............. James B . Dunn ...................... Editor M a n a g i n g ................................ H . Carter Robinson J r ......... Editor, Special Publications .............. Clarence L . Moody ................ Editor, Bullet in .................................. Shirley L . Mason .................. Engineers Council o f Houston .......... J a m e s H . ORg ........................ Entertainment .................................... B . F . Winborn, J r ...................

.................... . . Field T r i p ......................................... E H Rainwater ................ . Finance .............................................. Charles W Barnes

.................... . Frio Study Group ................................ L Bruce Forney .................. . . . ................................ G.C.A.G. S 1958 E T Musselman ............. ........ . G.C. A . G . S . 1959 ................... .. George C Hardin, J r

.................. Highway Strip Map .............................. F . W . Rol shausen

.................. . Insurance ............................................ J a m e s H McGuirt .............. . ............................ Library & Academic Liaison Olin G Bel l

...................... . New Membership ................................ Harold E Voigt

................... .......................... . Personnel Placement Glenn C Tague ... ........................ . ........................ Preservation Samples Hal fi Bybee

................. . Program .............................................. Edd R Turner, J r

.................... . Publici ty Manager .............................. J a m e s A Clark

.................... Remembrance & Vis i t i ng .................. Phi l l ip R . All in . ........................ Study Course s .................................... J a c k W Craig

............. ...... . Transportation & Special Training Carleton D Speed, Jr

T H E B U L L E T I N O F T H E HOUSTON GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY Subscription price . $3.00 per year

Published monthly. September to June Office-234 Esperson Building . Houston 2. Texas . F A 3-8211

P R I N T E D BY C A R D I N A L D U P L I C A T I N G S E R V I C E

~ & t ~ ~ .................... Shirley L . Mason, 813 Esperson Building .................... CA 7-8231 Ass't . Editor ............ James S . Cri t r , 400 O i l & Gas Building ...................... C A 2-6131