LIBRARY. OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY GEORGE OTIS SMITH, DIRECTOR 406 MCKITTRICR-SUNSET OIL REGION KERN AND SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTIES CALIFORNIA BT RALPH ARNOLD AND HARRY R. JOHNSON WASHINGTON GOVERNMENT PKINTING OFFICE 1910 CONTENTS. Page. Introduction.............................................................. 11 General features of the region.......................................... 11 Settlement............................................................. 12 Plan of the present report............................................... 12 Conditions limiting accuracy of maps................................... 14 Previous knowledge of the region........................................ 15 Acknowledgments...................................................... 16 Geography and topography.. ................................................. 18 Location.............................................................. 18 Description of place names............................................. 18 General topographic features........................................... 22 Land classification..................................................... 23 Geology.................................................................. 31 General statement...................................................... 31 Stratigraphy............-1 ............................................. 32 Non oil-bearing series.............................................. 32 Franciscan formation.......................................... 32 General description......................................... 32 Antelope Valley areas........................:............ 33 Other areas................................................ 34 Importance with relation to petroleum.. 1.................... 34 Knoxville-Chico rocks.......................................... 34 General description......................................... 34 Orchard Peak and Devils Den area......................... 35 Areas near McGovern's ranch............................... 37 Bitterwater Creek areas.................................... 37 Cedar Canyon and Salt Creek area........................... 37 Importance with relation to petroleum....................... 37 Tejon formation............................................... 38 General statement.......................................... 38 Point of Rocks area......................................... 38 McDonald's ranch area..................................... 39 Media Agua Creek and Carneros Spring area.................. 39 Importance with relation to petroleum......................'. 40 Oligocene (?) rocks............................................. 40 Distribution and character.................................. 40 Fossils and age............................................ 41 Area near Bartons. .......................................... 41 Relation to oil............................................ 41 Oil-bearing series.................................................. 41 Geologic history................................................ 41 Vaqueros sandstone............................................. 42 3 4 CONTENTS. Geology Continued. Stratigraphy Continued. Oil-bearing series Continued. Vaqueros sandstone Continued. Page. General statement.......................................... 42 Devils Den district....................................:... 44 Area south of Bartons.................................. 44 Wagonwheel Mountain area............................ 44 Area south of Dagany Gap.............................. 44 Other areas............................................ 44 District between Antelope Valley and Bitterwater Creek..... 45 General statement.................................... 45 McGovern's ranch area................................. 45 Packwood ranch area................................... 46 Other areas............................................ 47 District between Bitterwater and Salt creeks................. 47 General statement...................................... 47 McDonald's ranch area................................. 47 Cedar Canyon-Carneros Spring-Temblor ranch area...... 47 Area on summit of Temblor Range....................... 50 Vaqueros south of Salt Creek............................... 51 General statement.................................... 51 Area on summit south of Salt Creek.................... 52 Areas on southwest flank of Temblor Range.............. 53 Crocker Spring area.................................... 53 Vishnu area........................................... 53 Bitter Creek area..................................... 53 Areas along southwest margin of Carrizo Plain................ 54 Thickness of Vaqueros sandstone............................ 55 Monterey shale................................................ 55 Introductory statement..................................... 55 General description.... v..............-....'................ 56 Antelope Valley-Temblor area............................. 58 Sandstone dikes in Monterey shale......................... 59 Disappearance of Monterey south of Gould Hills............. 60 Sumner's ranch-Sunset area............................... 60 Importance with relation to petroleum..................... 62 Santa Margarita (?) formation.................................. 63 General statement.......................................... 63 Area in Devils Den district................................ 63 Areas in Bitterwater district................................. 64 Areas in Temblor district................................... 65 Areas in McKittrick district................................ 66 General statement.................................... 66 McKittrick area....................................... 66 Telephone Hills area.................................. 69 Area near Crocker Spring................................ 69 Area in Midway district.................................... 69 Area in Sunset district..................................... 71 Bitter Creek area......................................... 72 Areas east of Hazelton...................................... 72 Area in Carrizo district.................................... 73 Area near Garcia's ranch.,.,,.,,,,,.,.,,..,,..,.-,.,.,.,.,, 73 CONTENTS. 5 Geology Continued. Stratigraphy Continued. Oil-bearing series Continued. Santa Margarita (?) formation Continued. Pago. Area near Vishnu well..................................... 74 Importance with relation to petroleum....................... 74 McKittrick formation........................................... 74 General statement. ....................................... 74 Areas on northeast flank of Temblor Range................. 75 Introduction.......................................... 75 Lost Hills area............................'........:... 75 Antelope Hills area.................................... 75 Region southeast of Media Agua Creek................... 77 Areas on southwest flank of Temblor Range ................. 87 Lithology of beds on west slope............................ 87 Importance with relation to petroleum..................... 89 Undifferentiated Miocene...................................... 90 Quaternary sediments ............................................ 90 Description ........i.........:............................... 90 Importance with relation to petroleum......................... 92 Igneous rocks..................................................... 92 Structure. ................ 1........................................... 92 General Coast Range relations...................................... 92 Relation between structure and topography......................... 93 General structure................................................. 94 Structural details......................................... '. ....... 95 Syncline north of McGovern's ranch ........................... 95 Raven Valley anticline......................................... 95 Santos anticline .................................................. 95 Cross folds near Temblor ranch................................ 96 Temblor anticline..............................;............. 9G Sandiego anticline............................................. 9G Folds at summit of Temblor Range............................. 9G Santa Maria syncline........................................... 9G Folds of McKittrick district.................................... 97 Special structural conditions around McKittrick................... 97 Folds in hills northwest Of McKittrick............................ 99 Folds of Elk and Buena Vista hills............................. 99 Crocker Spring anticline....................................... 100 Folds in Midway and Sunset districts.... .\...................... 100 Faults............................................................ 100 Antelope Valley faults.......................................... 100 Temblor fault................................................. 101 San Andreas fault zone......................................... 101 Water supply.............................................................. 102 General statement...................................................... 102 Surface supply........................................................ 102 San Emidio Creek................................................ 102 - Buena Vista Lake................................................ 103 San Juan River. ................................................. 103 Underground supplies.................................................