Geology topics

William B. West

Publications and source records attributed to William B. West.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

USGS2009

Digital coordinates and age for 3,869 foraminifer samples collected by Chevron Petroleum geologists in Washington and Oregon

The general location and age of more than 33,500 mostly foraminifer samples from Chevron Petroleum Company surface localities in California were provided by Brabb and Parker (2003, 2005). Malmborg and others (2008) provided digital latitude, longitude, and age for more than 13,000 of these samples. We provide here for the first time the digital latitude, longitude, and age for nearly 4,000 Chevron surface and auger samples in Washington and Oregon.

Open-File Report↗

USGS2008

Digital coordinates and age of more than 13,000 foraminifers samples collected by Chevron Petroleum geologists in California

The general location and age of more than 33,500 mostly foraminifer samples from Chevron surface localities in nearly 600 U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) 7.5' quadrangles from California were provided by Brabb and Parker (2003). Barren and non-diagnostic samples plus many that have no paleontologic information were omitted to provide a revised list for more than 27,000 of these samples by Brabb and Parker (2005). The locations for many of these samples were recorded by Chevron geoscientists on topographic maps (originals now in the USGS Library in Menlo Park, Calif.). The recent availability of digital databases for geologic and topographic maps has provided the opportunity to prepare a database of the locations of these Chevron samples so that the information can be combined with geology and topography for plotting or geospatial analysis. This report provides specific locations for more than 13,000 samples in central California that have enough paleontologic information to determine their age but omits thousands of samples that are too closely spaced to differentiate or those that have only a general location.

California↗

USGS2003

Preliminary location and age database for invertebrate fossils collected in the San Francisco Bay region, California

Most geologic maps published for central California in the past century have been made without the benefit of microfossils. The age of Cretaceous and Tertiary rocks in the structurally complex sedimentary formations of the Coast Ranges is critical in determining stratigraphic succession and in determining whether the juxtapositon of similar appearing formations means that a fault is present. Since the 1930’s, at least, oil company geologists have used microfossils to assist them in geologic mapping and in determining the environments of deposition of sedimentary rocks. This information has been confidential, but in the past 20 years the attitude of petroleum companies about this information has changed, and much material is now available. We report here on approximately 4,700 samples, largely foraminifers, from surface localities in the San Francisco Bay region of California. The information contained here can be used to update geologic maps, to analyze the depth and temperature of ocean water covering parts of California during the Mesozoic and Cenozoic eras, and for solving other geologic problems.

California↗