Clinton Group

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Clinton Group

Stratigraphic range: Early Silurian
Port Clinton, PA - bedrock outcrop.jpg
Rocks of the Clinton Group on the east face of Schuylkill Gap
Type Geological formation
Sub-units Rochester Shale, Rose Hill Formation, Keefer Formation
Underlies Bloomsburg Formation in Pennsylvania, Lockport Group in New York
Overlies Tuscarora Formation in Pennsylvania, Clinch Formation in Virginia, Tennessee, and Maryland, Medina Group in New York
Thickness1640 ft
Lithology
Primary sandstone, shale, and limestone
Other Ironstone and conglomerate,
Location
Region Appalachian Basin of eastern North America
CountryUnited States
ExtentOhio, Pennsylvania, Maryland, New York, West Virginia
Type section
Named for Clinton, New York
Named byLardner Vanuxem (1842)

The Clinton Group (also referred to as the Clinton Formation or the Clinton Shale) is a mapped unit of sedimentary rock found throughout eastern North America. [1] [2] The interval was first defined by the geologist Lardner Vanuxem, who derived the name from the village of Clinton in Oneida County, New York where several well exposed outcrops of these strata can be found. [3] [4] The Clinton Group and its lateral equivalents extend throughout much of the Appalachian Foreland Basin, a major structural and depositional province extending from New York to Alabama. [1] The term has been employed in Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia, though in many of these areas the same interval is referred to as the Rose Hill, Rockwood, or Red Mountain Formations. [1] [5] Historically the term "Clinton" has also been assigned to several lower Silurian stratigraphic units in Ohio and Kentucky which are now known to be significantly older than the Clinton Group as it was originally defined. [6] Many parts of this succession are richly fossiliferous, making the Clinton Group an important record of marine life during the early Silurian. [4] Several economically valuable rock-types are found within this interval, though it is perhaps best known as a significant source of iron ore [7]

Contents

Stratigraphically, the Clinton Group overlies the coarse siliciclastics of the Medina Group in New York, The Albion Group in the Subsurface of Ohio, the Clinch Sandstone in Virginia and West Virginia, and the Tuscarora Sandstone in Pennsylvania. [1] [5] It is overlain by the shales and carbonates of the Lockport Group in New York, the McKenzie Formation in Pennsylvania, and the Sneedville Limestone in Tennessee. [1] [5] Owing to the great difference in resistivity between the relatively soft, readily weathering Clinton Group and the massive dolomites of the overlying Lockport, the former tends to erode preferentially out from underneath the latter. This has resulted in the formation of numerous cateracts such as Niagara Falls and the High Falls of Rochester, New York which are but local manifestations of a regional geographic feature called the Niagara Escarpment. [8]

Description

The Clinton Group (or Formation) is a widely traceable, lower Silurian lithostratigraphic unit composed primarily of shale and mudstone, though it encompasses a heterogeneous assemblage of sedimentary rock types, including conglomerate, sandstone, limestone, dolomite, and ironstone. [4] In its designated type area in Clinton, Oneida County, New York the unit is approximately 50 meters (180 feet) thick, and composed primarily of blue-grey mudstone, shale, and sandstone with several discrete ferruginous horizons, known colloquially as "Clinton Ironstones". [3] [4] The lateral equivalent of these beds to the south is the Rose Hill Formation of Pennsylvania, and olive-gray to drab, thin-bedded sandstone. [9]

An outcrop of Clinton Group Strata exposed at Seth Greene Drive in Rochester, New York. Pictured is the Reynales Limestone overlying the Maplewood Shale. The prominent bright red band is the Furnaceville (Ironstone) Member of the Reynales. Maplewood Furnaceville Reynales at SethGreene Rochester.jpg
An outcrop of Clinton Group Strata exposed at Seth Greene Drive in Rochester, New York. Pictured is the Reynales Limestone overlying the Maplewood Shale. The prominent bright red band is the Furnaceville (Ironstone) Member of the Reynales.

Economic uses

In Maryland, the Rose Hill Formation contained the Cresaptown Iron Sandstone. [9]

Age

Relative age dating of the Clinton Group places it in the Lower Silurian period. It rests conformably atop the Tuscarora Formation and conformably below the Lower and Upper Silurian Lockport Group [10] and Bloomsburg Formation. [11]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geology of the Appalachians</span> Geologic description of the Appalachian Mountains

The geology of the Appalachians dates back more than 1.1 billion years to the Mesoproterozoic era when two continental cratons collided to form the supercontinent Rodinia, 500 million years prior to the later development of the range during the formation of the supercontinent Pangea. The rocks exposed in today's Appalachian Mountains reveal elongate belts of folded and thrust faulted marine sedimentary rocks, volcanic rocks and slivers of ancient ocean floor – strong evidence that these rocks were deformed during plate collision. The birth of the Appalachian ranges marks the first of several mountain building plate collisions that culminated in the construction of the supercontinent Pangea with the Appalachians and neighboring Anti-Atlas mountains near the center. These mountain ranges likely once reached elevations similar to those of the Alps and the Rocky Mountains before they were eroded.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bald Eagle Mountain</span>

Bald Eagle Mountain – once known locally as Muncy Mountain – is a stratigraphic ridge in the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians of central Pennsylvania, United States, running east of the Allegheny Front and northwest of Mount Nittany. It lies along the southeast side of Bald Eagle Creek and south of the West Branch Susquehanna River, and is the westernmost ridge in its section of the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians. The ridge line separates the West Branch Susquehanna Valley from the Nippenose and White Deer Hole valleys, and Bald Eagle Valley from Nittany Valley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shawangunk Formation</span> Bedrock unit in eastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York

The Silurian Shawangunk Formation is a mapped bedrock unit in eastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York. It is named for the Shawangunk Ridge for which it is the dominant rock type. The division of the Shawangunk between the Tuscarora Formation and Clinton Group has not been conclusively determined. The shift of nomenclature currently has the divide between Hawk Mountain and Lehigh Gap.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bloomsburg Formation</span>

The Silurian Bloomsburg Formation is a mapped bedrock unit in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York and Maryland. It is named for the town of Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania in which it was first described. The Bloomsburg marked the first occurrence of red sedimentary rocks in the Appalachian Basin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tuscarora Sandstone</span> Bedrock unit in Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, and Virginia, US

The Silurian Tuscarora Formation — also known as Tuscarora Sandstone or Tuscarora Quartzite — is a mapped bedrock unit in Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, and Virginia, US.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Juniata Formation</span>

The Ordovician Juniata Formation is a mapped bedrock unit in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, Tennessee, and Maryland. It is a relative slope-former occurring between the two prominent ridge-forming sandstone units: the Tuscarora Formation and the Bald Eagle Formation in the Appalachian Mountains.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reedsville Formation</span> Rock formation in the USA

The Ordovician Reedsville Formation is a mapped surficial bedrock unit in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, and Tennessee, that extends into the subsurface of Ohio. This rock is a slope-former adjacent to the prominent ridge-forming Bald Eagle sandstone unit in the Appalachian Mountains. It is often abbreviated Or on geologic maps.

The Silurian McKenzie Formation is a mapped bedrock unit in Maryland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hamilton Group</span> Geological Group in North America

The Hamilton Group is a Devonian-age geological group which is located in the Appalachian region of the United States. It is present in New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Ohio, West Virginia, northwestern Virginia and Ontario, Canada, and is mainly composed of marine shale with some sandstone.

The Devonian Mahantango Formation is a mapped bedrock unit in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Maryland. It is named for the North branch of the Mahantango Creek in Perry and Juniata counties in Pennsylvania. It is a member of the Hamilton Group, along with the underlying the Marcellus Formation Shale. South of Tuscarora Mountain in south central Pennsylvania, the lower members of this unit were also mapped as the Montebello Formation. Details of the type section and of stratigraphic nomenclature for this unit as used by the U.S. Geological Survey are available on-line at the National Geologic Map Database.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pottsville Formation</span>

The Pennsylvanian Pottsville Formation is a mapped bedrock unit in Pennsylvania, western Maryland, West Virginia, Ohio, and Alabama. It is a major ridge-former in the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians of the eastern United States. The Pottsville Formation is conspicuous at many sites along the Allegheny Front, the eastern escarpment of the Allegheny or Appalachian Plateau.

The Joli Fou Formation is a allostratigraphicalunit of middle Albian age in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin. It takes the name from the Joli Fou Rapids on the Athabasca River, and was first described in an outcrop along the river, 8 kilometers (5.0 mi) downstream from Joli Fou Rapids, by RTD Wickenden in 1949.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Albany Shale</span>

The New Albany Shale is an organic-rich geologic formation of Devonian and Mississippian age in the Illinois Basin of the United States. It is a major source of hydrocarbons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tonoloway Formation</span>

The Late Silurian Tonoloway Formation is a mapped limestone bedrock unit in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia. The Tonoloway is roughly equivalent to the Salina group that is found to the north and west.

The Oriskany Sandstone is a Middle Devonian age unit of sedimentary rock found in eastern North America. The type locality of the unit is located at Oriskany Falls in New York. The Oriskany Sandstone extends throughout much of the Appalachian Basin.

The Vernon Formation is a geologic formation in the Appalachian Basin. It is the lowest unit of the Salina Group. It is made up of red and green shales, siltstone, dolomite, anhydrite and halite. It is made up of three distinct units starting at the bottom (oldest) A, B and C units. These units correspond to units of the same name in its parent group the Salina.

The Gasport Formation is a geologic formation in the Appalachian Basin and Michigan Basin. This is one of the reef formations separating the Appalachian Basin from the Michigan Basin and the Ohio Basin. It is a part of the Lockport Group of carbonates. It is the lowest and oldest formation within the Lockport. The Gasport is found in Michigan,New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. Outcrops are limited to the area around the Great Lakes. It is part of a large reef structure dating back to the Silurian period. Being part of the Lockport Group it is a feature of the Niagara Escarpment.

The Mansfield Natural Gas Field is located west of Mansfield, Ohio, within the Appalachian foreland basin. The field is 1.5 miles (2.4 km) long by 1.4 miles (2.3 km) wide and is in a general oval shape, stretching northward. This field, although small, is an analog for many of the natural gas fields that occur within the Appalachian Basin. It was first discovered by the Pan American Petroleum and Transport Company in the early 1930s. It is part of the Utica – Lower Paleozoic system, which is estimated to make up 15 to 20 percent of the total hydrocarbon abundance of the Appalachian Basin.

The geology of Ohio formed beginning more than one billion years ago in the Proterozoic eon of the Precambrian. The igneous and metamorphic crystalline basement rock is poorly understood except through deep boreholes and does not outcrop at the surface. The basement rock is divided between the Grenville Province and Superior Province. When the Grenville Province crust collided with Proto-North America, it launched the Grenville orogeny, a major mountain building event. The Grenville mountains eroded, filling in rift basins and Ohio was flooded and periodically exposed as dry land throughout the Paleozoic. In addition to marine carbonates such as limestone and dolomite, large deposits of shale and sandstone formed as subsequent mountain building events such as the Taconic orogeny and Acadian orogeny led to additional sediment deposition. Ohio transitioned to dryland conditions in the Pennsylvanian, forming large coal swamps and the region has been dryland ever since. Until the Pleistocene glaciations erased these features, the landscape was cut with deep stream valleys, which scoured away hundreds of meters of rock leaving little trace of geologic history in the Mesozoic and Cenozoic.

The Bertie Group or Bertie Limestone, also referred to as the Bertie Dolomite and the Bertie Formation, is an upper Silurian geologic group and Lagerstätte in southern Ontario, Canada, and western New York State, United States. Details of the type locality and of stratigraphic nomenclature for this unit as used by the U.S. Geological Survey are available on-line at the National Geologic Map Database. The formation comprises dolomites, limestones and shales and reaches a thickness of 495 feet (151 m) in the subsurface, while in outcrop the group can be 60 feet (18 m) thick.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Brett, C.E.; Baarli, B.G.; Chowns, T.; Cotter, E.; Driese, S.; Goodman, W.; Johnson, M.E. (1998). "Early Silurian Condensed Intervals, Ironstones, and Sequence Stratigraphy in the Appalachian Foreland Basin". In Landing, E.; Johnson, M.E. (eds.). Silurian Cycles: Linkages of Dynamic Stratigraphy with Atmospheric, Oceanic and Tectonic Changes. James Hall Centennial Volume. New York State Museum Bulletin. Vol. 491. pp. 89–143.
  2. "Clinton Group, Group". National Geologic Map Database. Retrieved 2012-10-05.
  3. 1 2 Vanuxem, L. (1839). "Third Annual Report of the Geological Survey of the Third District". New York State Geological Survey Annual Report. Vol. 3. pp. 241–285.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Gillette, T. (1947). "The Clinton of Western and Central New York". New York State Museum Bulletin. Vol. 341. Albany, New York: The University of the State of New York. pp. 1–191.
  5. 1 2 3 Brett, C.E.; Goodman, W.M.; LoDuca, S.T. (1990). "Sequences, cycles, and basin dynamics in the Silurian of the Appalachian Foreland Basin". Sedimentary Geology. 69 (3–4): 191–244. Bibcode:1990SedG...69..191B. doi:10.1016/0037-0738(90)90051-T.
  6. Rexroad, C.B.; Branson, E.R.; Smith, M.O.; Summerson, C.; Boucot, A.J. (1965). "The Silurian Formations of East-Central Kentucky and Adjacent Ohio". Kentucky Geological Survey, Series X. 2: 1–34.
  7. "Iron Ore Mining and Manufacturing in the Town of Kirkland". Lecture at the Clinton Historical Society meeting on April 16, 1998 at the Society's Headquarters on Fountain Street, Clinton, New York. Retrieved 2012-10-05.
  8. "The Niagara Escarpment". Archived from the original on 2010-06-04. Retrieved 2012-10-05.
  9. 1 2 "Geologic Maps of Maryland" . Retrieved 2008-01-26.
  10. Ryder, Robert T.; et al. "Possible Continuous-Type (Unconventional) Gas Accumulation in Lower Silurian "Clinton" Sands, Medina Group, and the Tuscarora Sandstone in the Appalachian Basin: A Progress Report of 1995 project activities". USGS . Retrieved 2008-01-26.
  11. Jackson, Margaret S.; Hanley, Peter M.; Sak, Peter B. (2007). "Preliminary Bedrock Geologic Map of the Middle Portion of the Susquehanna River Valley, Cumberland, Dauphin, And Perry Counties, Pennsylvania" (PDF). Open File Report OFBM-07-05.0. Pennsylvania Geological Survey. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 9, 2011. Retrieved 2008-01-26.

See also

40°44′05″N77°46′42″W / 40.73472°N 77.77833°W / 40.73472; -77.77833