Sinkhole risk in Jefferson County, OH: Pockets of it

Pockets of it

Soluble rock at the surface or under thin cover in part of the county.

On soluble rock: 31%
At or near the surface: 31%
Buried under cover: 0%

What to do about a house in Jefferson County

Check the parcel against your state survey sinkhole map, and ask for an inspection if cracks, depressions or sticking doors show up.

That works out to roughly 127 of Jefferson County's 408 square miles on soluble rock, 127 of them with the rock at or near the surface. With about 63,900 residents (157 per square mile), homes are spread across towns and farmland, and a mapped unit may or may not reach the developed parts. The figures come from 297 map points about 1.2 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Counties around Jefferson County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Winchester city, VA, about 161 miles southeast. 3 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band; the ground changes quickly around here.

Hancock County, WV 13 mi northeast · 2% at surface
Brooke County, WV 13 mi southeast · 38% at surface
Harrison County, OH 19 mi southwest · 24% at surface
Carroll County, OH 21 mi northwest · 0% at surface
Ohio County, WV 22 mi south · 22% at surface
Columbiana County, OH 26 mi north · 0% at surface

Which formation it is

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Monongahela Group (shale), Pennsylvanian in age, covering about 31% of the county.

The county also lies over the Michigan Basin; Ohio Basin; Appalachian Basin, a deep salt or gypsum basin. Deep beds rarely cause surface collapse on their own, but wells and mining into them have.

Against the rest of Ohio

Jefferson County ranks 2 of 88 in Ohio for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 80% of US counties on that measure.