Oil and Gas in Eastern Kansas — 1954 Geological Survey + 25-Year Update

A detailed historical record of the geology beneath one of America's long-developed oil-producing regions.

Originally published by the Kansas Geological Survey in 1954, John Mark Jewett's Oil and Gas in Eastern Kansas documents the stratigraphy, geological structures, oil and gas fields, and petroleum development of eastern Kansas across nearly 400 pages. The work became Kansas Geological Survey Bulletin 104 and remains part of the Survey's scientific archive.

This later edition adds an unusual second layer to that history: a 25-year update by geologist Margaret O. Oros, written in 1979, allowing the original mid-century survey to be viewed alongside a quarter-century of subsequent development. KGS records the update as a 30-page addition to Jewett's original work.

Today, the volume is particularly interesting as a historical artifact documenting how geologists mapped and understood petroleum resources during the enormous expansion of fossil-fuel development in twentieth-century America. The original 1954 study predates broad public understanding of the eventual atmospheric consequences of large-scale fossil-fuel combustion; the 1979 update comes from a substantially later period and is best read in the context of the industry's continued development as evidence of climate risks was becoming increasingly significant.

Details: John Mark Jewett; 25-year update by Margaret O. Oros. Kansas Geological Survey, University of Kansas. Bulletin 104. Original publication 1954; update 1979; this edition reprinted 1985. Approximately 397 pages plus update. Softcover.

Condition: Vintage used copy. Minor edge and cover wear visible. Removable page markers/tabs still present from scientist use.