Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 35, Number 96, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 August 1903 — Sinkholes in Kansas. [ARTICLE]

Sinkholes in Kansas.

An interesting phenomenon in Western Kansas is described and pictured In a recent report of the United States Geological Survey. One of the natural curiosities of the great plains region Is known as the Meade salt well, in Southwestern Kansas. It made its appearance very suddenly in 18S9. On March 3 In that yerft the famous Jones and Plummer cattle trail extended right over the spot where this depression was soon to appear. A wagon passed along the trail over this level ground. It is nq| known that this spot was seen-again until twenty-three days later, when it was found that the ground for a considerable area had sunk into the earth and the hole was partly filled with water from au, underground source. The sinkhole remains to-day, and on either side of it are still to be seen the road ruts and cattle trails along which for years scores of thousands of ranch cattle were driven from Northern Texas Into Kansas. There were very few routes of travel across this wide plain. But the accident to the surface occurred on the most important of them.