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Water wells in the Prairielands Groundwater Conservation District

Home water wells inside the Prairielands Groundwater Conservation District (Hill, Ellis, Johnson and Somervell counties, Texas) are typically 240 to 520 feet deep (median 400 ft, 1,763 wells drilled in the last 10 years). No single layer dominates: 40% draw from the upper Trinity (Paluxy and Glen Rose), 29% from the Woodbine Aquifer and 19% end at or just below the base of the Woodbine (Washita and Fredericksburg groups), according to the state's Northern Trinity and Woodbine model (TWDB). Over the last three full years drillers reported about 196 new home wells a year; the peak was 254 in 2022. Estimated cost of a complete well at the median depth: $12,500 to $30,500.

Updated every day from Texas Water Development Board driller reports. Last update: November 11, 2026, using the state file of November 10, 2026.

Map of the Prairielands Groundwater Conservation DistrictDistrict boundary (Hill, Ellis, Johnson and Somervell counties) with the places that have the most home wells.Cleburne: 500 ftCleburneGodley: 500 ftGodleyGlen Rose: 460 ftGlen RoseGrandview: 200 ftGrandviewBurleson: 600 ftBurlesonVenus: 300 ftVenusAlvarado: 240 ftThe Homesteads: 260 ft25 miles

Under the center of the Prairielands GCD

District boundary from TWDB's file current as of November 2019. Later changes are not shown.

Home wells in and around the Prairielands GCD

Each dot is a home well from a state driller report, colored by depth. Tap one for its details and official report. Tap an empty spot to see what is under that point.

See underground

Well depth (ft)

  • <100
  • 100
  • 200
  • 300
  • 400
  • 600
  • 800+

Dark line: the district boundary (TWDB, 2019)

Key figures

Typical depth (middle half)
240 to 520 feet
Median depth
400 feet
Deepest 10% are past
660 feet
Water level (median)
280 feet
1,374 wells
Yield (median)
15 gpm
1,549 wells, gallons per minute
Wells used
1,763
In the last 10 years
Counties
4
All years on file
3,097
median 420 ft, since 2001
Confidence
Standard (30 or more wells)

When the wells were finished, the water stood a median 280 feet below the surface (1,374 wells).

Map of the Prairielands Groundwater Conservation DistrictDistrict boundary (Hill, Ellis, Johnson and Somervell counties) with the places that have the most home wells.Cleburne: 500 ftCleburneGodley: 500 ftGodleyGlen Rose: 460 ftGlen RoseGrandview: 200 ftGrandviewBurleson: 600 ftBurlesonVenus: 300 ftVenusAlvarado: 240 ftThe Homesteads: 260 ft25 miles
District boundary from TWDB's file current as of November 2019. Later changes are not shown.

New home wells per year

Over the last three full years drillers reported about 196 new home wells a year; the peak was 254 in 2022.

Home wells reported per year in the Prairielands GCDFrom 2002 to 2026. The table below has every year.01002003002002: 382003: 1202004: 10520042005: 1492006: 1822007: 1162008: 9920082009: 662010: 642011: 692012: 5720122013: 592014: 692015: 602016: 8220162017: 1062018: 1262019: 1682020: 18820202021: 1882022: 2542023: 2482024: 17820242025: 1612026: 135
Domestic wells with a depth, by the year they were finished. 2026 is still in progress.
Show the data table
YearWells
200238
2003120
2004105
2005149
2006182
2007116
200899
200966
201064
201169
201257
201359
201469
201560
201682
2017106
2018126
2019168
2020188
2021188
2022254
2023248
2024178
2025161
2026135

Which formation the wells draw from

No single layer dominates: 40% draw from the upper Trinity (Paluxy and Glen Rose), 29% from the Woodbine Aquifer and 19% end at or just below the base of the Woodbine (Washita and Fredericksburg groups), according to the state's Northern Trinity and Woodbine model (TWDB). Here the state maps the Trinity as one undivided unit, the Antlers Formation, so that split between layers is approximate.

Layer (state's model)ShareWellsTypical depth (ft)
Upper TrinityPaluxy and Glen Rose40%702440–570
Woodbine29%516220–360
At or just below the base of the WoodbineWashita and Fredericksburg19%328210–300
Lower TrinityTwin Mountains and Travis Peak9%165457–700
Above the Woodbine3%4861–141
Near or below the base of the Trinity<1%4—

For 96% of these wells the report says where the water enters (the screen or the open hole), and we use the middle of that interval.

Places with the most wells in the district

PlaceMedian depth (ft)Middle half (ft)WellsMain layer
Cleburne500480–598174Upper Trinity (Paluxy and Glen Rose)
Godley500460–560155Upper Trinity (Paluxy and Glen Rose)
Glen Rose460380–500149Lower Trinity (Twin Mountains and Travis Peak)
Grandview200179–220123At or just below the base of the Woodbine (Washita and Fredericksburg)
Burleson600536–660104Upper Trinity (Paluxy and Glen Rose)
Venus300280–32097Woodbine
Alvarado240220–24696At or just below the base of the Woodbine (Washita and Fredericksburg)
The Homesteads260240–28072Woodbine
Keene605173–73260Upper Trinity (Paluxy and Glen Rose)
Midlothian450375–78057Woodbine
Joshua640600–66043Upper Trinity (Paluxy and Glen Rose)
Coyote Flats200200–76539At or just below the base of the Woodbine (Washita and Fredericksburg)

Counties

Depth over time

Home well depth in the district has not changed meaningfully in 20 years: the median was 440 feet in 2003 to 2007 and 400 feet in 2021 to 2025 (a difference under 10% or within the margin of error).

PeriodMedian depth (ft)Wells
2001–2005402422
2006–2010450527
2011–2015460314
2016–2020420670
2021–20254001,029
2026360135

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Common questions

How deep are wells in the Prairielands GCD?

Home water wells inside the Prairielands Groundwater Conservation District (Hill, Ellis, Johnson and Somervell counties, Texas) are typically 240 to 520 feet deep (median 400 ft, 1,763 wells drilled in the last 10 years).

Which formation do wells in the district draw from?

No single layer dominates: 40% draw from the upper Trinity (Paluxy and Glen Rose), 29% from the Woodbine Aquifer and 19% end at or just below the base of the Woodbine (Washita and Fredericksburg groups), according to the state's Northern Trinity and Woodbine model (TWDB). Here the state maps the Trinity as one undivided unit, the Antlers Formation, so that split between layers is approximate.

What does a groundwater conservation district do?

In Texas, districts are the local authority over groundwater: they can require registration or permits for new wells, set spacing from other wells and property lines, and limit pumping. Each district writes its own rules, so ask the Prairielands Groundwater Conservation District before drilling inside it.

What a well costs here

At the median depth for the district (400 feet), a complete home well would cost roughly $12,500 to $30,500: $25 to $60 per foot for drilling, casing and seal, plus $2,500 to $6,500 for the pump, pressure tank, controls and hookup at the well. Across the whole middle half of depths (240 to 520 feet) the range runs from $8,500 to $37,500. This is TerraFunded's estimate from published Texas prices, not a quote, and it leaves out trenching and the line to the house. Get prices from at least two licensed drillers.

How these numbers are made

We count new and replacement domestic (home) wells whose coordinates fall inside the district boundary. We use the last 10 years when there are at least 30 wells; otherwise all since 2001. The median is the middle well and the middle half runs from the 25th to the 75th percentile.

To tell which layer a well draws from, we take the ground elevation at its location, subtract the depth of the interval where water enters (or the bottom of the hole when the report does not give one) and see which layer of the state's model that point falls in.

For 96% of these wells the report says where the water enters (the screen or the open hole), and we use the middle of that interval.

How well it works: In 7,977 wells in the area of the state's Northern Trinity and Woodbine model (North and Central Texas) where the State of Texas recorded the aquifer, our estimate of the formation the well draws from names the same layer of the state's model in about 74% of them, and that layer or the one next to it in at least 95%; among the 3,130 of those wells that the state places in a Trinity layer (Paluxy to Hosston) it is about 56%.

  • The layers come from the Texas Water Development Board's Northern Trinity and Woodbine model, with quarter mile cells, summarized here to about 1.3 miles. It is a regional model, not a survey of any lot: between one model point and the next, the real depth of each layer can differ.
  • In this model every layer is at least 30 feet thick, even where the real rock is thinner or missing. Thin layers and the edges of the model are approximate.
  • Inside the Trinity this atlas does not name single model layers: it groups the Paluxy and Glen Rose (upper Trinity) and groups the Hensell, Pearsall and Hosston (lower Trinity, Twin Mountains and Travis Peak), because the check against the state's codes shows the method cannot separate them reliably.
  • In this area, north and west of Fort Worth, the state maps the Trinity as one undivided unit, the Antlers Formation. The model cuts it into layers by depth; the split between upper and lower Trinity shown here is approximate, and the depth ranges are the solid part.
  • "Near or below the base of the Trinity" means the well reaches the bottom of the model or passes it, often by tens of feet. Older rock that the model does not include may lie there.
  • We never use the model's water levels. The water level on this page is the one each driller measured when the well was finished.

These are depths of real wells drilled nearby, not a promise about any property. Groundwater can change over short distances and with drought. A licensed water well driller can tell you what to expect on a specific tract.

Read the full methodology · Download the data (CSV, CC BY 4.0)

How to cite

TerraFunded (2026). Texas Well Atlas: Underground. From Texas Water Development Board driller reports and groundwater availability models (data as of November 10, 2026). https://terrafunded.com/wells/districts/prairielands-groundwater-conservation-district. License CC BY 4.0. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.24126380.

Sources