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The San Franciscan volcanic field, Arizona

LOCATION OF AREA The San Franciscan volcanic field, which takes its name from San Francisco Mountain, the largest volcano of the group, covers about 3,000 square miles in the north-central part of Arizona, as shown by the shaded space on the index map forming figure 1. The center of the field lies about 50 miles south of the Grand Canyon of the Colorado and the southern boundary is in part coterminous with that of the San Francisco Plateau, which forms the southwestern division of the great Colorado Plateau. The region is easily reached, for the main line of the Atchison, Topeka, & Santa Fe Railway traverses it from east to west for more than 60 miles. Flagstaff, a town of 1,500 inhabitants 10 miles south of the summit of San Francisco Mountain, is on the railroad, amid a branch line runs from Williams, 34 miles farther west, to the Grand Canyon. All the more important points of interest in the field may be reached without difficulty by wagon, and outfits may be obtained at Flagstaff. OUTLINE OF THE REPORT This report deals primarily with the volcanic phenomena of the region as determined in the field and laboratory. Chapter I contains a brief description of the geography of the field and Chapter II is devoted largely to the sedimentary formations and structure. The rest of the report Chapters III to VI—treats entirely of the various features of the volcanoes and igneous rocks, both individually and collectively. Detailed descriptions of the volcanoes and lava fields are given in Chapter III; the volcanic history of the region and its correlation with the general history of the surrounding country are presented in Chapter IV. These two chapters will presumably suffice for the general reader who may desire to become acquainted with the broader volcanic features of the region. Chapter V (Petrography) is devoted entirely to the detailed description of the individual igneous rocks of the region, as represented by a selected set of type specimens. In Chapter VI (Petrology) is presented a discussion of the igneous rocks considered collectively—that is, as a series of genetically related members. These last two chapters will be more especially interesting to petrologists, although there is considerable matter in the last chapter which may also be of interest to the general reader. EXTENT OF FIELD WORK The field work on which the report is based was carried on during the summers of 1901 to 1903, a portion of the time, however, being occupied by side trips to the Grand Canyon of the Colorado, the Verde Valley, and the Moqui Buttes. It was the original intention to study only San Francisco Mountain, but scattered observations made during the first summer at other localities, especially at Elden Mountain and Kendrick Peak, seemed to indicate that the region would repay wider study. The work was accordingly extended so as to embrace all the large cones that lie in the vicinity of San Francisco Mountain and some 2,000 square miles of the surrounding plateau country. The more detailed work was confined to the large cones and the laccoliths, as they presented the greatest variety of phenomena within the smallest space. Reconnaissance work was carried on in the surrounding country more especially for the purpose of determining the limits of the widespread basalt flows, their relation to the underlying sedimentary formations, and the character of those formations.

Arizona↗

Geology of the Sierra Foothills Melange and adjacent areas, Amador County, California

Detailed outcrop mapping in the western Sierra foothills of Amador County, Calif., has resulted in some major changes in the interpretation of stratigraphy and structure. The Amador Group was originally defined at its type locality on the south bank of the Cosumnes River in Amador County to include the Cosumnes Formation and the conformably overlying Logtown Ridge Formation, but the new data indicate that the lower boundary of the type Logtown Ridge should be located 600 m farther west (downsection) than originally designated and that this boundary is a fault. The strata that were originally called the Cosumnes Formation are part of a lithologically diverse assemblage of tectonically intermixed rocks that constitute a newly recognized melange and thus are not a formational rock-stratigraphic unit as the earlier workers believed. Thus, the names Cosumnes Formation and Amador Group are both inappropriate in their type area and are abandoned. The Logtown Ridge Formation is here divided into four members, some of which cross what earlier was considered to be a formational boundary of the Logtown Ridge with overlapping pyroclastic strata. The outcrop mapping requires additional changes, although of lesser importance, in the identification and correlation of other Mesozoic rocks in Amador County. The newly recognized melange forms a 4-km-wide belt underlying the Logtown Ridge Formation. In addition to the type section of the abandoned Cosumnes Formation and scattered fault-bounded blocks of strata of Cosumnes lithology, the melange comprises rocks heretofore mapped as "western belt of Calaveras Formation," considered to be of Paleozoic age. Single clasts of this huge tectonic breccia range from a few centimeters to a few kilometers in maximum dimension. Distinctive strata are generally disrupted, and pervasive shearing is common. In the absence of fossils, no age of original deposition can be assigned to any clast or matrix of the melange, but on the basis of indirect structural evidence, the intermixing that formed the melange probably took place during the Late Jurassic or before, and therefore the now sheared and faulted strata must originally have been at least this old. Available data are ambiguous but suggest that rocks were intermixed to form the melange when the strata were horizontal or nearly so. Similarly, the overlying Logtown Ridge and Mariposa Formations were faulted when these rocks were essentially horizontal. The entire section was subsequently tilted to its present, nearly vertical position. Traditional syntheses of the tectonic history of the Sierra foothills argue that the faults there have always been steeply dipping. Although this may be true for some faults, the new interpretation suggests that most faulting occurred before the section was steeply tilted. Neither suggestion can yet be proved, but we maintain that the highly deformed rocks mapped in Amador County represent primarily the effects of subduction at a continental margin, possibly augmented by gravity tectonics in a trough of sediment accumulation there. On the basis of the ages of affected strata, this period of subduction was Late Jurassic but possibly began at an earlier time. If this interpretation of the melange in Amador County is correct, a belt of similarly deformed rocks should extend far beyond the limits of the study area.

California↗

Post-Carboniferous stratigraphy, northeastern Alaska

Post-Carboniferous sedimentary rocks exposed in northeastern Alaska constitute an almost continuous sequence representing all systems from Permian to Quaternary. Because the rocks are well exposed, only slightly deformed, and very fossiliferous, they comprise an important biostratigraphic reference section. Regional and local unconformities are present, and minor hiatuses can be identified in the stratigraphic record. The rocks are divided into 3 groups, 14 formations, and 16 members; some are newly named, others revised. The Ignek Formation is abandoned, and the Okpikruak Formation is excluded from the stratigraphic sequence in northeastern Alaska. The Sadlerochit Formation is raised to group rank and divided into the Echooka (Permian) and Ivishak (Lower Triassic) Formations. The Echooka includes the Joe Creek and Ikiakpaurak Members (both new), and the Ivishak is divided into the Kavik, Ledge Sandstone, and Fire Creek Siltstone Members (all new). The Shublik Formation (Middle and Upper Triassic) is informally divided into siltstone, limestone and dolomite, and clay shale members; it is separated from the Kingak Shale (Jurrassic) by the (Upper Triassic) Karen Creek Sandstone (new). Lower Cretaceous (Neocomian) rocks are mapped as the Kongakut Formation (new). The Kongakut includes the clay shale, Kemik Sandstone, pebble shale, and siltstone members. The Bathtub Graywacke (new) may be in part equivalent to the Fortress Mountain Formation. The Nanushuk and Colville Groups are extended into northeastern Alaska to replace the Ignek Formation. The Nanushuk includes the Tuktu and Chandler Formations, and the Colville is subdivided into its subordinate Seabee, Prince Creek, and Schrader Bluff Formations. All Tertiary rocks are included in the redefined Sagavanirktok Formation, which is divided into the Sagwon, Franklin Bluffs, and Nuwok Members (new). The Gubik Formation (Pleistocene) is extended into northeastern Alaska. Post-Carboniferous rocks are mainly sandstone, siltstone, shale, and conglomerate, and include both marine and terrestrial deposits with a cumulative thickness of about 8,500 m (28,000 ft). Marine transgressions and regressions are identified in the stratigraphic sequence, and a major shift from a northern source area for the older rocks to a southern source for the younger rocks is demonstrated. This change took place during the Early Cretaceous, and the Bathtub Graywacke is the first unit to clearly reflect a southerly source area. Post-Carboniferous orogeny in northeastern Alaska started during the Aptian Stage of the Lower Cretaceous. Pre-Aptian sandstones are mature, clean, quartz arenites, whereas most post-Aptian sandstones are lithic arenites or graywackes.

Alaska↗

Relation of the Cretaceous formations to the Rocky Mountains in Colorado and New Mexico

Some time ago, while working on a problem that involved the question of the presence or absence of islands near the close of the Cretaceous period in the region now occupied by the southern part of the Rocky Mountains, I was forced to the conclusion that no land masses or islands of any considerable size persisted there throughout the Cretaceous period, for I found no sedimentary rocks that were clearly derived from such islands. This result led to a reexamination of available information to see what evidence the sedimentary rocks in other areas near the present mountains could furnish, and I found rather unexpected confirmation of my conclusion. In the course of this study it became evident t that there is apparent conflict of testimony between different classes of fossils and that the physical evidence, including lithology, structure, and sequence of beds, is at variance with some of the commonly accepted correlations. In this state of uncertainty I tried to apply physiographic principles to see if they would throw any light on the interrelations of the interrelations of the Cretaceous formations of the Rocky Mountain region and on the events that opened and closed the period. This led me to a conclusion similar to that reached by the paleontologist C. A. White many years ago, namely, that the Upper Cretaceous formations up to and including the Laramie extended across the site of the mountains.

Colorado, New Mexico↗

Relation of the Wissahickon mica gneiss to the Shenandoah limestone and Octoraro schist of the Doe Run and Avondale region, Chester County, Pennsylvania

The region discussed in this paper lies in Chester County, Pa., and is included in the eastern half of the Coatesville quadrangle. (See fig. 3.) It is within the belt of crystal-line schists and gneisses of the Piedmont Plateau. The northern half of the area, which will be called the Doe Run region, from the village of that name (see Fig. 4, p. 15), has been surveyed by Eleanora F. Bliss in connection with the problem of the relation of the Wissahickon mica gneiss to the Octoraro schist.

Pennsylvania↗

Revision of the Beckwith and Bear River formations of southeastern Idaho

In the detailed geologic mapping of the Wayan and Montpelier quadrangles, in south-eastern Idaho and adjacent territory, it has been found necessary to apply new names to strata hitherto referred to the Beckwith and Bear River formations or to portions of the Laramie as mapped by the Hayden Survey. The two quadrangles are contiguous, and the Montpelier quadrangle lies south of the Wayan. They occupy the corner of the State and include a very narrow strip in northeastern Utah and a somewhat broader strip in western Wyoming.

Idaho↗

The Pliocene Citronelle Formation of the Gulf Coastal Plain. The flora of the Citronelle Formation

In the spring of 1910 the writer, working under the direction of T. Wayland Vaughan, geologist in charge of Coastal Plain investigations, undertook a study of the later Tertiary formations of the Gulf Coastal Plain. According to the plans outlined before the work was begun, the beds that had formerly been grouped under the names Lafayette formation and Grand Gulf formation were to be studied with a view to their possible separation into more satisfactory stratigraphic units that might be correlated with other formations which, on the basis of their fossils, had been assigned to their proper positions in the geologic time scale. The original plan included a study of the post-Vicksburgian Tertiary deposits from western Florida to Mississippi River and correlations with formations previously recognized in Florida, southern Alabama, and Louisiana. This plan was subsequently modified to extend the investigation as far west as Sabine River. The field work was interrupted and the office work was delayed by calls for geologic work in other areas, so that the preparation of the reports could not be begun until the spring of 1914.

Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi↗

The Catahoula sandstone

The name Catahoula was first used in 1905 by Veatch as a synonym for "typical Grand Gulf," but the description of the formation, which is here quoted, was not published until the following year.

Mississippi↗

Precambrian basement geologic map of Montana– An interpretation of aeromagnetic anomalies

Newly compiled aeromagnetic anomaly data of Montana, in conjunction with the known geologic framework of basement rocks, have been combined to produce a new interpretive geologic basement map of Montana. Crystalline basement rocks compose the basement, but are exposed only in the cores of mountain ranges in southwestern Montana. Principal features deduced from the map are: (1) A prominent northeast-trending, 200-km-wide zone of spaced negative anomalies, which extends more than 700 km from southwestern Montana's Beaverhead Mountains to the Canadian border and reflects suturing of the Archean Mexican Hat Block against the Archean Wyoming Province along the Paleoproterozoic Trans-Montana Orogen (new name) at about 1.9-1.8 Ga; (2) North-northwest-trending magnetic lows in northeastern Montana, which reflect the 1.9-1.8 Ga Trans-Hudson Orogen and truncate the older Trans-Montana Zone; and (3) Subtle northwest- and west-trending negative anomalies in central and western Montana, which represent the northernmost segment of brittle-ductile transcurrent faults of the newly recognized Mesoproterozoic Trans-Rocky Mountain fault system. Structures developed in the Proterozoic provided zones of crustal weakness reactivated during younger Proterozoic and Phanerozoic igneous and tectonic activity. For example, the Trans-Montana Zone guided basement involved thrust faulting in southwestern Montana during the Sevier Orogeny. The Boulder Batholith and associated ore deposits and the linear belt of alkaline intrusions to the northeast were localized along a zone of weakness between the Missouri River suture and the Dillon shear zone of the Trans-Montana Orogen. The northwest-trending faults of Trans-Rocky Mountain system outline depocenters for sedimentary rocks in the Belt Basin. This fault system provided zones of weakness that guided Laramide uplifts during basement crustal shortening. Northwest-trending zones have been locally reactivated during Neogene basin-range extension.

Montana↗

Geology of the Southern Appalachian Mountains

The Southern Appalachian Mountains includes the Blue Ridge province and parts of four other physiographic provinces. The Blue Ridge physiographic province is a high, mountainous area bounded by several named mountain ranges (including the Unaka Mountains and the Great Smoky Mountains) to the northwest, and the Blue Ridge Mountains to the southeast. Metamorphic rocks of the mountains include (1) fragments of a billion-year-old supercontinent, (2) thick sequences of sedimentary rock that were deposited in subsiding (sinking) basins on the continent, (3) sedimentary and volcanic rocks that were deposited on the sea floor, and (4) fragments of oceanic crust. Most of the rocks formed as sediments or volcanic rocks on ocean floors, islands, and continental plates; igneous rocks formed when crustal plates collided, beginning about 450 million years ago. The collision between the ancestral North American and African continental plates ended about 270 million years ago. Then, the continents began to be stretched, which caused fractures to open in places throughout the crust; these fractures were later filled with sediment. This product (U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Map 2830) consists of a geologic map of the Southern Appalachian Mountains overlain on a shaded-relief background. The map area includes parts of southern Virginia, eastern West Virginia and Tennessee, western North and South Carolina, northern Georgia and northeastern Alabama. Photographs of localities where geologic features of interest can be seen accompany the map. Diagrams show how the movement of continental plates over many millions of years affected the landscapes seen today, show how folds and faults form, describe important mineral resources of the region, and illustrate geologic time. This two-sided map is folded into a convenient size (5x9.4 inches) for use in the field. The target audience is high school to college earth science and geology teachers and students; staffs of educational and interpretive programs within Federal, State, and private agencies; and tourists and residents of the Southern Appalachian region who want to know more about the area. The map is companion to the DVD, 'The Southern Appalachians, a Changing World' (http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/so_app/) and the Teacher's Guide and brochure, 'Birth of the Mountains' (http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/birth). The map shows the location of sites that are featured in these publications.

Scientific Investigations Map↗

Geologic map of the Peach Orchard Flat quadrangle, Carbon County, Wyoming, and descriptions of new stratigraphic units in the Upper Cretaceous Lance Formation and Paleocene Fort Union Formation, eastern Greater Green River Basin, Wyoming-Colorado

This report provides a geologic map of the Peach Orchard Flat 7.5-minute quadrangle, located along the eastern flank of the Washakie Basin, Wyo. Geologic formations and individual coal beds were mapped at a scale of 1:24,000; surface stratigraphic sections were measured and described; and well logs were examined to determine coal correlations and thicknesses in the subsurface. In addition, four lithostratigraphic units were named: the Red Rim Member of the Upper Cretaceous Lance Formation, and the China Butte, Blue Gap, and Overland Members of the Paleocene Fort Union Formation.

Wyoming↗

Geologic map of the Wrangell-Saint Elias National Park and Preserve, Alaska

Wrangell-Saint Elias National Park and Preserve, the largest national park within the U.S. National Park Service system, extends from the northern Pacific Ocean to beyond the eastern Alaska Range into interior Alaska. It features impressively spectacular scenery such as high and craggy mountains, active and ancient volcanoes, expansive ice fields, immense tidewater glaciers, and a myriad of alpine glaciers. The park also includes the famous Kennecott Mine, a world-class copper deposit that was mined from 1911 to 1938, and remnant ghost town, which is now a National Historic Landmark. Geologic investigations encompassing Wrangell-Saint Elias National Park and Preserve began in 1796, with Dmitriv Tarkhanov, a Russian mining engineer, who unsuccessfully ventured up the Copper River in search of rumored copper. Lieutenant H.T. Allen (1897) of the U.S. Army made a successful epic summer journey with a limited military crew up the Copper River in 1885, across the Alaska Range, and down the Tanana and Yukon Rivers. Allen?s crew was supported by a prospector named John Bremner and local Eyak and Ahtna native guides whose tribes controlled access into the Copper River basin. Allen witnessed the Ahtnas? many uses of the native copper. His stories about the copper prompted prospectors to return to this area in search of the rich copper ore in the years following his journey. The region boasts a rich mining and exploration history prior to becoming a park in 1980. Several U.S. Geological Survey geologists have conducted reconnaissance surveys in the area since Allen?s explorations. This map is the result of their work and is enhanced by more detailed investigations, which began in the late 1950s and are still continuing. For a better understanding of the processes that have shaped the geology of the park and a history of the geologic investigations in the area, we recommend U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1616, ?A Geologic Guide to Wrangell-Saint Elias National Park and Preserve, Alaska,? an exceptionally well illustrated and informative book by Gary R. Winkler, 2000. Geologically, the park consists of a collage of seven tectonostratigraphic terranes that formed south in the equatorial Pacific Ocean and rafted northward on oceanic plates, eventually accreting to Alaska and the North American continent. Each terrane features a distinct stratigraphy and is separated from neighboring terranes by major strike-slip or thrust faults.

Alaska↗

Geologic Map of the Frederick 30' x 60' Quadrangle, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia

The Frederick 30? ? 60? quadrangle lies within the Potomac River watershed of the Chesapeake Bay drainage basin. The map area covers parts of Montgomery, Howard, Carroll, Frederick, and Washington Counties in Maryland; Loudoun, Clarke, and Fairfax Counties in Virginia; and Jefferson and Berkeley Counties in West Virginia. Many geologic features (such as faults and folds) are named for geographic features that may or may not be shown on the 1:100,000-scale base map. The geology of the Frederick 30? ? 60? quadrangle, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia, was first mapped on the 32 1:24,000-scale 7.5-minute quadrangle base maps between 1989 and 1994. The geologic data were compiled manually at 1:100,000 scale in 1997 and were digitized between 1998 and 1999. The geologic map and database may be used to support activities such as land-use planning, soil mapping, groundwater availability and quality studies, identifying aggregate resources, and conducting engineering and environmental studies. The map area covers distinct geologic provinces and sections of the central Appalachian region that are defined by unique bedrock and resulting landforms. From west to east, the provinces include the Great Valley section of the Valley and Ridge province, the Blue Ridge province, and the Piedmont province; in the extreme southeastern corner, a small part of the Coastal Plain province is present. The Piedmont province is divided into several sections; from west to east, hey are the Frederick Valley synclinorium, the Culpeper and Gettysburg basins, the Sugarloaf Mountain anticlinorium, the Westminster terrane, and the Potomac terrane. The geology of the Frederick quadrangle is discussed by geologic province and sections; the geologic units within each province are discussed from oldest to youngest. Where applicable, the discussion includes information on tectonic origins. For more information concerning the report, please contact the author.

Scientific Investigations Map↗

Geologic map of the Mead quadrangle (V-21), Venus

The Magellan spacecraft orbited Venus from August 10, 1990, until it plunged into the Venusian atmosphere on October 12, 1994. Magellan Mission objectives included (1) improving the knowledge of the geological processes, surface properties, and geologic history of Venus by analysis of surface radar characteristics, topography, and morphology and (2) improving the knowledge of the geophysics of Venus by analysis of Venusian gravity. The Mead quadrangle (V-21) of Venus is bounded by lat 0 deg and 25 deg N., long 30 deg and 60 deg E. This quadrangle is one of 62 covering Venus at 1:5,000,000 scale. Named for the largest crater on Venus, the quadrangle is dominated by effusive volcanic deposits associated with five major coronae in eastern Eistla Regio (Didilia, Pavlova, Calakomana, Isong, and Ninmah), corona-like tectonic features, and Disani Corona. The southern extremity of Bell Regio, marked by lava flows from Nyx Mons, north of the map area, forms the north-central part of the quadrangle. The shield volcanoes Kali, Dzalarhons, and Ptesanwi Montes lie south and southwest of the large corona-related flow field. Lava flows from sources east of Mead crater flood low-lying areas along the east edge of the quadrangle.

Scientific Investigations Map↗

Stratigraphic framework and depositional sequences in the Lower Silurian regional oil and gas accumulation, Appalachian Basin: From Licking County, Ohio, to Fayette County, West Virginia

The Lower Silurian regional oil and gas accumulation was named by Ryder and Zagorski (2003) for a 400-mile (mi)-long by 200-mi-wide hydrocarbon accumulation in the central Appalachian basin of the Eastern United States and Ontario, Canada. From the early 1880s to 2000, approximately 300 to 400 million barrels of oil and eight to nine trillion cubic feet of gas have been produced from the Lower Silurian regional oil and gas accumulation (Miller, 1975; McCormac and others, 1996; Harper and others, 1999). Dominant reservoirs in the regional accumulation are the Lower Silurian "Clinton" and Medina sandstones in Ohio and westernmost West Virginia and coeval rocks in the Lower Silurian Medina Group (Grimsby Sandstone (Formation) and Whirlpool Sandstone) in northwestern Pennsylvania and western New York. A secondary reservoir is the Upper Ordovician(?) and Lower Silurian Tuscarora Sandstone in central Pennsylvania and central West Virginia, a more proximal eastern facies of the "Clinton" sandstone and Medina Group (Yeakel, 1962; Cotter, 1982, 1983; Castle, 1998). The Lower Silurian regional oil and gas accumulation is subdivided by Ryder and Zagorski (2003) into the following three parts: (1) an easternmost part consisting of local gas-bearing sandstone units in the Tuscarora Sandstone that is included with the basin-center accumulation; (2) an eastern part consisting predominantly of gas-bearing "Clinton" sandstone-Medina Group sandstones that have many characteristics of a basin-center accumulation (Davis, 1984; Zagorski, 1988, 1991; Law and Spencer, 1993); and (3) a western part consisting of oil- and gas-bearing "Clinton" sandstone-Medina Group sandstones that is a conventional accumulation with hybrid features of a basin-center accumulation (Zagorski, 1999). With the notable exception of the offshore part of Lake Erie (de Witt, 1993), the supply of oil and (or) gas in the hybrid-conventional part of the regional accumulation continues to decline because of the many wells drilled there since the late 1880s. However, new gas and local oil continues to be discovered in the deeper basin-center part (Zagorski, 1991; Pees, 1994; Petroleum Information Corporation, 1994). In general, only small quantities of gas have been produced from the Tuscarora Sandstone fields because of their generally poor reservoir quality and because of the low energy (Btu) content of the gas (Avary, 1996). Although fracture porosity is the dominant porosity type in the Tuscarora Sandstone gas reservoirs (Avary, 1996), there are several fields, such as Indian Creek, where intergranular porosity seems to be important (Bruner, 1983; Castle and Byrnes, 2005). In order to better understand the character and origin of the Lower Silurian regional oil and gas accumulation and its component parts, six cross sections were drawn through the Lower Silurian strata in parts of New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. The locations of all six cross sections are shown on sheet 2 (figs. 1 and 2) of this report. Each cross section shows the stratigraphic framework, depositional setting, sequence stratigraphy, and hydrocarbon-producing intervals of the Lower Silurian sandstone reservoirs and adjoining strata. Cross section F–F′ presented here is about 215 mi long and trends northwestward, approximately normal to the depositional strike of the Lower Silurian sandstone system, and extends through large stretches of the basin-center and hybrid-conventional parts of the Lower Silurian regional oil and gas accumulation.

Ohio, West Virginia↗

Historic trail map of the La Junta 1 degree x 2 degree quadrangle, southeastern Colorado and western Kansas

This historic trail map of the La Junta quadrangle contains all or part of eight Colorado and Kansas counties. Many of the historic trails in the La Junta quadrangle were used by Indians long before the white man reached the area. The earliest recorded use of the trails by white men in the quadrangle was in the 1820s when traders brought goods from St. Louis for barter with the Indians and for commerce with the Mexican settlements in New Mexico. The map and accompanying pamphlet include an introduction and the method of preparation used by the authors. The pamphlet includes a description of the early explorers along the Arkansas River and on the Santa Fe Trail, as well as roads established or proposed under General Assembly session law, Colorado Territorial corporations and charters, 1859-1876, and freighting companies. Stage companies that probably operated in the La Junta quadrangle also are described. The authors include a section on railroads in the quadrangle and north of the quadrangle along the Arkansas River. Military and civilian camps, forts, and bases are reported. Moreover, fossils and plants in the quadrangle are described. Indian tribes - Early Man or paleo-Indians, Archaic Indians, prehistoric and historic Indians, and historic Indian tribes in the quadrangle - are reported. Authors include place names within and along freight routes leading to the La Junta quadrangle. A full description of the contents along with three figures can be found in the Introduction.

Colorado, Kansas↗

Hydrostratigraphic Framework and Selection and Correlation of Geophysical Log Markers in the Surficial Aquifer System, Palm Beach County, Florida

The surficial aquifer system is the major source of freshwater for public water supply in Palm Beach County, Florida, yet many previous studies of the hydrogeology of this aquifer system have focused only on the eastern one-half to one-third of the county in the more densely populated coastal area (Land and others, 1973; Swayze and others, 1980; Swayze and Miller, 1984; Shine and others, 1989). Population growth in the county has resulted in the westward expansion of urbanized areas into agricultural areas and has created new demands on the water resources of the county. Additionally, interest in surface-water resources of central and western areas of the county has increased. In these areas, plans for additional surface-water storage reservoirs are being made under the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan originally proposed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the South Florida Water Management District (1999), and stormwater treatment areas have been constructed by the South Florida Water Management District. Surface-water and ground-water interactions in the Everglades are thought to be important to water budgets, water quality, and ecology (Harvey and others, 2002). Most of the previous hydrogeologic and ground-water flow simulation studies of the surficial aquifer system have not utilized a hydrostratigraphic framework, in which stratigraphic or sequence stratigraphic units, such as those proposed in Cunningham and others (2001), are delineated in this stratigraphically complex aquifer system. A thick zone of secondary permeability mapped by Swayze and Miller (1984) was not subdivided and was identified as only being within the Anastasia Formation of Pleistocene age. Miller (1987) published 11 geologic sections of the surficial aquifer system, but did not delineate any named stratigraphic units in these sections. This limited interpretation has resulted, in part, from the complex facies changes within rocks and sediments of the surficial aquifer system and the seemingly indistinct and repetitious nature of the most common lithologies, which include sand, shell, sandstone, and limestone. Model construction and layer definition in a simulation of ground-water flow within the surficial aquifer system of Palm Beach County utilized only the boundaries of one or two major hydrogeologic zones, such as the Biscayne aquifer and surficial aquifer system; otherwise layers were defined by average elevations rather than geologic structure or stratigraphy (Shine and others, 1989). Additionally, each major permeable zone layer in the model was assumed to have constant hydraulic conductivity with no allowance for the possibility of discrete (thin) flow zones within the zone. The key to understanding the spatial distribution and hydraulic connectivity of permeable zones in the surficial aquifer system beneath Palm Beach County is the development of a stratigraphic framework based on a consistent method of county-wide correlation. Variability in hydraulic properties in the system needs to be linked to the stratigraphic units delineated in this framework, and proper delineation of the hydrostratigraphic framework should provide a better understanding and simulation of the ground-water flow system. In 2004, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the South Florida Water Management District, initiated an investigation to develop a hydrostratigraphic framework for the surficial aquifer system in Palm Beach County.

Scientific Investigations Map↗

Geologic Map of the Kings Mountain and Grover Quadrangles, Cleveland and Gaston Counties, North Carolina, and Cherokee and York Counties, South Carolina

This geologic map of the Kings Mountain and Grover 7.5-min quadrangles, N.C.-S.C., straddles a regional geological boundary between the Inner Piedmont and Carolina terranes. The Kings Mountain sequence (informal name) on the western flank of the Carolina terrane in this area includes the Neoproterozoic Battleground and Blacksburg Formations. The Battleground Formation has a lower part consisting of metavolcanic rocks and interlayered schist and an upper part consisting of quartz-sericite phyllite and schist interlayered with quartz-pebble metaconglomerate, aluminous quartzite, micaceous quartzite, manganiferous rock, and metavolcanic rocks. The Blacks-burg Formation consists of phyllitic metasiltstone interlayered with thinner units of marble, laminated micaceous quartzite, hornblende gneiss, and amphibolite. Layered metamorphic rocks of the Inner Piedmont terrane include muscovite-biotite gneiss, muscovite schist, and amphibolite. The Kings Mountain sequence has been intruded by metatonalite and metatrondhjemite (Neoproterozoic), metagabbro and metadiorite (Paleozoic?), and the High Shoals Granite (Pennsylvanian). Layered metamorphic rocks of the Inner Piedmont in this area have been intruded by the Toluca Granite (Ordovician?), the Cherryville Granite and associated pegmatite (Mississippian), and spodumene pegmatite (Mississippian). Diabase dikes (early Jurassic) are locally present throughout the area. Ductile fault zones of regional scale include the Kings Mountain and Kings Creek shear zones. In this area, the Kings Mountain shear zone forms the boundary between the Inner Piedmont and Carolina terranes, and the Kings Creek shear zone separates the Battleground Formation from the Blacksburg Formation. Structural styles change across the Kings Mountain shear zone from steeply dipping layers, foliations, and folds on the southeast to gently and moderately dipping layers, foliations, and recumbent folds on the northwest. Mineral assemblages in the Kings Mountain sequence show a westward decrease from upper amphibolite facies (sillimanite zone) near the High Shoals Granite in the eastern side of the map area to upper greenschist (epidote-amphibolite) facies in the south-central part of the area near the Kings Mountain shear zone. Amphibolite-facies mineral assemblages in the Inner Piedmont terrane increase in grade from the kyanite zone near the Kings Mountain shear zone to the sillimanite zone in the northwestern part of the map area. Surficial deposits include alluvium in the stream valleys and colluvium along ridges and steep slopes. These quadrangles are unusual in the richness and variety of the mineral deposits that they contain, which include spodumene (lithium), cassiterite (tin), mica, feldspar, silica, clay, marble, kyanite and sillimanite, barite, manganese, sand and gravel, gold, pyrite, and iron.

Scientific Investigations Map↗