The Seelyville Coal Member of the Linton Formation in Indiana potentially contains 0.03 trillion m(3) (1.1 TCF) of coalbed gas. The gas content determined by canister desorption technique ranges from 0.5 to 5.7 cm(3)/g on dry ash free basis (15.4 to 182.2 scf/ton). The controls on gas content distribution are complex, and cannot be explained by the coal rank alone. Ash content and the lithology of the overlying strata, among other factors, may influence this distribution. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.