Sinkhole risk in Cherokee County, KS: Mostly deep or small

Mostly deep or small

Some soluble rock, mostly deeply buried or in a small share of the county.

On soluble rock: 6%
At or near the surface: 6%
Buried under cover: 0%

What this means before you buy

Sinkholes are uncommon here; watch for new depressions after heavy rain or leaking pipes.

That works out to roughly 36 of Cherokee County's 588 square miles on soluble rock, 36 of them with the rock at or near the surface. With about 19,133 residents (33 per square mile), much of the land is open, and the mapped rock may sit far from where people actually live. The figures come from 391 map points about 1.2 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Worth reading for this county: how these percentages are measured, and the warning signs that apply anywhere.

Counties around Cherokee County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Ottawa County, OK, about 23 miles south, close enough that the same rock may run under the county line. None of the 6 closest counties land in the same band, so Cherokee County stands out from its surroundings.

Ottawa County, OK 23 mi south · 63% at surface
Crawford County, KS 23 mi north · 56% at surface
Labette County, KS 25 mi west · 74% at surface
Jasper County, MO 28 mi east · 85% at surface
Newton County, MO 33 mi southeast · 99% at surface
Craig County, OK 34 mi southwest · 31% at surface

The rock underneath

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Meramecian and Osagian Series: Warsaw Limestone and Keokuk Limestone (limestone), Mississippian- Osagian in age, covering about 5% of the county. Next is the Marmaton Group at 1%.

Against the rest of Kansas

Cherokee County ranks 78 of 105 in Kansas for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 64% of US counties on that measure.