Abstract: Based on the records of several hundred deep wells, contour maps have been prepared showing the monoclinal structure of part of western New York, and isopach lines have been drawn showing the westward convergence of the rocks. The mode of occurrence of natural gas in the Medina group is briefly discussed. The location of the gas fields has not been determined by structural traps, but rather stratigraphy and lithology are the controlling factors in trapping the gas, which occurs in porous lenses and streaks of sandstone sealed within impermeable beds. This mode of occurrences of the Medina gas makes the search for new fields in western New York more hazardous than in most natural gas regions. As structure has not formed traps for the gas there is no surface guide to favorable sites for testing, and new fields are found by haphazard drilling. It would be helpful, however, when wells are sunk, to study the lithology of the gas-bearing zone by an examination of the drill cuttings and core samples of the sand and to have electrical logs made of the wells to obtain measurements of permeability and porosity. Such tests may indicate the direction of greatest porosity in …

From introduction: Since the discovery of the Wayne-Dundee gas field in 1930 and the more recent discovery of large quantities of gas in the Oriskany sandstone about 2 miles north of the village of Greenwood the search for similar favorable structural features has been greatly stimulated in the Finger Lakes region and southwestward to the Pennsylvania line. To aid those interested in the area to gain a clearer understanding of the regional structure and its relation to the subsurface structure, parties in charge of the senior author were assigned during the field seasons of 1934 and 1935 to make a geologic study of Steuben County and parts of the adjacent counties.

From introduction: Geochemical studies of zinc-bearing peats in western New York State show them to be related genetically to underlying mineralized beds of the Lockport dolomite of Niagaran age. (...) Intermittent field work was begun in the area by the United States Geological Survey in September 1946; after some interruptions, field work was completed in June 1948. In 1950, 1,900 feet of diamond drilling was completed in the area.