Vinton Township (part 2 of 8)

Near Wilkesville and to the south along "Yankee Road" the Parker strath is well represented by wide flats and terraces standing about 700 feet above tide. Its position here is 50 to 80 feet above the present valley floor of Flatlick Run and 180 to 220 feet below the general level of the Worthington peneplain. These plains are also distinct east and north of Wilkesville. As the preglacial streams in Knox and Vinton townships were small for the most part and as the erosion subsequent to the drainage changes has been severe, the strath stage in these areas is marked only by isolated, rock-cut terraces along some of the courses and by fragments of narrow, poorly drained valleys, now deserted through shifting of the waters to other passages. The position of these old valleys is commonly between 740 and 760 feet above sea. The village of Zaleski in Madison Township is located on the Parker strath. Its surface here stands at an elevation of about 750 feet, that of the Worthington peneplain at 960 feet, that of the Harrisburg peneplain at 1,060, and that of the floor of the present stream at 690 feet. The region thus shows four cycles of uplift and erosion each of which left its imprint on the topography. West of Prattsville in sections 26 and 32, Madison Township, a part of an old valley of Parker age is sharply outlined and has been little changed since it was abandoned. In Brown Township the preglacial streams were all small and their courses have been followed closely by the present ones. On this account the strath stage is not especially prominent and is marked only by scattered terraces and by occasional flats from stream meandering.

In Clinton Township the Parker strath is exceptionally well represented by the wide valley extending from Hamden northward to Dundas. Parts of its surface are yet very swampy as the present streams have not been able to thoroughly dissect the old plain. In fact, Little Raccoon Creek is the only one that has effectively removed the silt to a sufficient depth to expose the rock floor. Terraces and flats of this age are also locally present along all the small streams entering the main valley. The work of preglacial streams in Elk Township is yet clearly defined. A strath of the Parker cycle continues northward from Dundas past McArthur and Elk Fork to Creola and another extends northeastward from Dundas along the line ef the Baltimore and Ohio Southwestern Railroad to Zaleski. Old valleys of smaller size and little disturbed extend northeastward from the village of Elk Fork to Raccoon Creek in Section 35, Swan Township, westward from Elk Fork across sections 4 and 5 to the headwaters of Elk Fork, and northwestward from McArthur across sections 21, 20, and 18 to the upper course of Puncheon Fork. For the most part these plains have not been greatly disturbed as the present streams instead of following the original courses have excavated new channels along other routes. The floors, however, have been swept rather clean of silts and eroded to a depth of 20 to 40 feet where the present streams now cross the old beds. Elsewhere these valleys are drained by minor tributaries which only locally have found consolidated rock. The strath level stands at elevations of 730 to 750 feet along the larger valleys and at 740 to 800 feet along the laterals. In Swan Township strath features, either projecting terraces or long, narrow flats, are comimon along the route followed by the Hocking Valley Railway from Creola to New Plymouth. The best preserved part is south of Orland where the old floor is still deeply buried by silt. Along the small valleys in the western part of the area such evidence has been largely removed as the present streams have simply cut deeper in the old courses. Small terraces, however, are evident at many places. :

In Salt Creek Basin in western Vinton County, in Jackson, Eagle, Harrison, and Richland townships, the Parker stage of erosion is less well preserved than it is in Raccoon Basin in the central and eastern parts. The effect of the great glacier was not so much a shifting of the courses, except in a few places, as a lowering of the outlets which thus allowed the streams to erode deeper in old beds. In Jackson Township remnants of the preglacial valley floors are small and poorly defined. Along Pike Run in Eagle Township, sections 20 and 29, the Parker is best represented by slender terraces projecting far into the valley. Along Salt Creek and Pretty Run in this area about all that remains of the old beds are small flats raised 30 to 40 feet above flood plains. These are most prominent near Eagle Mills in Section 22 and east of this in Section 23. In this area the Harrisburg peneplain stands, on the average, at an elevation of 1,060 feet, the Worthington at 960 feet, and the Parker strath at 670 feet. The valley walls rise abruptly from the lower to the intermediate level, then more gradually to the upper one found along the summits of the main ridges. Strath features are not prominent in Richland Township as streams are all small and as drainage was only locally modified by glacial action. Small terraces and flats are present along Little Raccoon Creek in the southeastern part of the area and along Middle Fork in Section 7. In Harrison Township the work of preglacial streams is fragmentarily well preserved in the central and western parts. In readjustment of the drainage old channels were locally abandoned and their beds now stand as high flats from 60 to 80 feet above the present flood plains. Such features are present along the Chillicothe-McArthur Road between Salt Creek and Middle Fork in sections 18, 19, and 20, near the Clark School in sections 16 and 21, and west of Ratcliffburg in sections 10 and 15. The strath floor has an elevation not far from 670 feet and is deeply buried with silt. Small terraces are also present along Middle Fork and Pigeon Creek in the southern part of the township.

The imprint of the Parker cycle of uplift and erosion is thus distinct in most of Vinton County and is exceptionally well preserved locally in the central and southern parts. The uplift was sufficient to allow the larger streams to cut from 250 to 290 feet below the mean level of the old Worthington peneplain. The rate of movement appears to have been uniform and somewhat rapid as the streams were able ° to erode valleys not beyond maturity and with no well-defined terrace other than that caused by the resistance of hard layers of rock. By a relative estimate of work done the Parker cycle appears to have been short compared to the older ones, yet its duration was far greater than the time that has elapsed since the completion of this and the inauguration of the present succession of uplift and erosion.

The Parker strath has been beneficial in many ways toward the development of Vinton County. The Baltimore and Ohio Southwestern Railroad from Zaleski to beyond Hamden and the Hocking

Valley Railway from New Plymouth to Hamden are located throughout most of these distances on strath plains. Such surfaces furnish a natural grade for public roads many miles of which are thus located in this area. Further, abandoned valleys provide easy passages over what would otherwise be rough barriers between the present streams. These gently rolling terraces and flats, having good drainage and standing some little distance above the flood plains of the present streams, form suitable sites for towns and villages. On the Parker strath in Vinton County are located New Plymouth, Creola, Elk Fork, Mc- Arthur, Dundas, Zaleski, Prattsville, Hamden, and Wilkesville. It also furnishes many tracts of comparatively level land which are valuable for farming purposes.

The Waverly Group

The oldest rocks of Vinton County make up the four western townships. These are conglomerates, sandstones, and shales in layers or beds to a thickness of about 360 feet. They are the upper portion of about 1,000 feet thickness of sandstone and shales, sufficiently alike in character and in the history of their formation that the name Waverly group is applied to the whole. The lower portion of this group is exposed to the westward in Ross and Pike counties.!

The rock beds appear flat-lying on small outcrops, but in fact they dip very gently to the eastward. As a result, the lower beds which are exposed in Ross and Pike counties lie below the level of all streams in the western part of Vinton County. For the same reason, the whole of the group descends to the eastward and its beds are found underlying the entire central and eastern part of the county, where they are penetrated by all wells of a few hundred feet depth.

These sandstones, conglomerates, and shales of the Waverly group, bed on bed to a total thickness of nearly 1,000 feet, can be grouped into nine distinct members or formations, of which the upper six are exposed in valleys of the western part of the county, while the three lower ones are below stream level, but exposed a few miles farther west.

Each of these members or formations can be followed from hill to hill to the northward and southward, across the county into adjoining counties, over long distances, some of them entirely across the State, others three-fourths of the way from the Ohio River to Lake Erie. This is in keeping with the character of most sedimentary rocks.

Some of these formations change rapidly in character from place to place, so that often within a few miles it is difficult to believe the changes, and the true relationships can be established only by careful tracing of the beds. It is not usual to find in sedimentary rocks, such rapid change in character as is found here, and to understand properly these rocks in Vinton County, it is necessary to know something of how they are related to rocks of the same age in adjoining counties.

44 VINTON COUNTY The chief changes take place across the four western townships from east, northeast to west, southwest. Farther northeast and north across Hocking and Fairfield counties, even more striking changes are present, requiring to some extent recognition of members not present in Vinton County.

The following table shows the subdivisions of the Waverly, and very briefly their character, in the counties to the northeast and southwest of Vinton County. Only the Cuyahoga formation presents notably great differences. The four western townships of Vinton County lie in the transition zone between these counties and exhibit the passage from the Cuyahoga conglomerate of Hocking County into the shales of Pike County.

The following table shows briefly the formations present in different places in the four western townships of Vinton County, and in some detail, the chief changes in character. There is little change from place to place in the members or formations of the Logan, but the beds of the Cuyahoga change rapidly. This table shows the transition zone between the two columns of the last table.

Mississippian System Cuyahoga Formation

The term Cuyahoga! has some variation in meaning in the following description. It designates the entire series of rocks from the Sunbury shale to the base of the Logan, whether they be the sandstones of the Hocking Valley or the equivalent shales of the Scioto Valley. The shales we do not hesitate to call Cuyahoga, because the type Cuyahoga formation is a shale, but the sandstones, where present, have been given other names, and, by a kind of traditional practice inherited from the past, the name Cuyahoga is not often applied to them. Hence, the name may designate the whole thickness where it is a shale, as along the western line of the county, or it may designate only the shaly portions in places where much of this thickness is sandstone and separately named, as a few miles to the east.

Black Hand member. - To the north and northeast from the Vinton County Waverly, that is in Benton, Laurel, and Falls townships of Hocking County, the Black Hand is a massive, conglomeratic sandstone, forming numerous prominent ledges on all streams which cut deeply into it. Some of the finest cliffs are to be seen in the southeast quarter of Benton Township on Feed Race or its tributaries, ands. although it does not form such prominent ledges, the conglomerate is well developed on Goose Creek in the southwest quarter. These occurrences are very near the north line of Vinton County. The heads of the larger streams, where flowing over the Logan, are of slight fall, in valleys with mature, evenly sloping sides and narrow bottom lands bordering the streams. 'This is ended abruptly at the point where the stream cuts into the top of the Black Hand, by a precipitous fall, sometimes 100 feet or more in height, and from that point onward, the valley is very rugged and bordered by abruptly sloping sides or perpendicular ledges.

Immediately south of this in Jackson Township of Vinton County, changed conditions are present. The topography is different. Ledges comparable to those of Hocking County are entirely wanting and the outcrops of the Black Hand are, at the most, only a few feet in height, and occur only in banks and beds of streams exposed to washing and in roadside cuttings. The streams flow without any appreciable change in gradient from the Logan rocks into the Black Hand. There is even no change in the hillside slopes at the top of the Black Hand. The

*The name Cuyahoga, as used in this bulletin, covers a somewhat greater thickness of rocks than in the earlier reports of central Ohio, by including the Black Hand member. So used, it designates a very distinct group of sedimentary rocks, which have had much in common in their history, a group for which a single name is needed. It is not at all certain, however, that Cuyahoga is the proper name. As it was originally used, the name covered two or three hundred feet of shales and sandstones overlying the Berea sandstone in the Cuyahoga Valley of northern Ohio, which are readily subdivisible into several members that are not certainly intimately related, and at most, the name appears to cover there only the lower part of the beds here called Cuyahoga, larger streams are bordered throughout much of their length by narrow bottom lands, seldom more than a few hundred feet in width, to which the hills usually slope more or less abruptly, and often steeply, but nowhere as cliffs.

In the northern and eastern part of Jackson Township, as far south as the Richland Township line, the Black Hand is a conglomerate with numerous quartz pebbles up to one-fourth or one-half inch in diameter, both scattered through the body of the sandstone and in thin streaks, but without the capacity to form ledges. 'Toward the southwest part of Jackson Township the pebbles decrease rapidly in number and within two miles of a locality where they are abundant, they may disappear entirely. The Black Hand becomes a finer grained sandstone without pebbles, bluish-gray in color, weathering dull gray or buff; the bedding is in regular layers, thick, but tending to split on exposure into pieces two to four inches thick. There is considerable evidence of gentle current action in the fine lamination which occurs throughout. It weathers by splitting off large slabs parallel to the outcrop face, irrespective of the bedding. Outcrops are often discolored by a white efflorescence. The stone is apparently wholly valueless.

The coarse sandstones and conglomerates of Hocking County are without fossils. As these sandstones become less coarse, fossils make their appearance, often while there is yet a considerable pebble content. These are the first localities south of Lancaster in Fairfield County where the Black Hand has carried a marine fauna. This fauna is fairly abundant in the upper part of the Black Hand but the lower part carries only Camarotoechia.

The Black Hand of Richland Township is much like that of Jackson Township except that pebbles are seldom seen. It is found extensively only in the western and northern portions, where only the upper part is exposed. It is below drainage in the southeast portion.

This sandstone is found as far west in Eagle Township as the Narrows of Salt Creek where it is 121 feet thick. (See section near end of chapter for detail.) This is about three-fourths of a mile south of the Hocking County line.

Two miles southwest of this section, a few poor outcrops are seen in the gully of the road from Eagle Mills over the hill to Jimtown, on the eastern side of the hill. These serve to demonstrate the almost complete passage of the Black Hand sandstone into shales. The Berne pebble bed which is found everywhere immediately on top of the Black Hand is present but was not seen in position. The horizon was identified by a number of large, loose blocks; it appears to be about 10 inches thick and consists largely of pebbles one-eighth to three-sixteenths of an inch thick. Nothing can be seen for 20 feet below it, but still lower there are about 20 feet of gray clay shales and sandstones very like those of the Cuyahoga, but occurring at a horizon which, two miles to the eastward, is in the upper part of the Black Hand. Above the Berne pebble bed the Logan sandstones are very poorly shown, but at 90 feet higher the loose debris from the Allensville pebble bed appears, serving as an excellent check on the identity of the Black Hand. Below the section scattered shale outcrops of the Cuyahoga, possibly the horizon of the Black Hand, occur for half a mile or more along the road down the stream. 'The section is a very poor one, but there can be no doubt of the horizons and it serves to show in connection with the one at The Narrows, the passage into shale of probably the whole of the Black Hand sandstone within two miles.

No section was seen west of this point until well within Harrison Township of Ross County, three to five miles 'distant, where sections show that the Black Hand has passed entirely into a shale, the horizons of the Allensville and Berne pebble beds being readily identified, and serving as checks.

In Harrison Township lying south of the last, the Black Hand member is well shown throughout the eastern tier of sections and is essentially like that seen immediately to the eastward and to the northward. In the southwest quarter of Section 13, near the middle of the eastern line of the township, its thickness is at least 95 to 100 feet. Three-quarters of a mile northeast of Ray in the road above the Corinth church, at least 60 feet of the Black Hand is present carrying fossils. Both of these localities are within a mile of the eastern line of the township. With the exception of a few outcrops along the northern line of the township, nothing is known, as yet, of this formation over the remainder of the township, because of hasty examination of poor outcrops.

In the west central part of Section 4, where the old abandoned Jackson-Tarleton road descends from the hilltop into a short tributary of Salt Creek, poor outcrops suggest that the Black Hand is largely replaced by Cuyahoga shale. This is within 3 miles west of a locality showing 95 feet of Black Hand sandstone.

Cuyahoga shales. - These are best exposed in Eagle Township. In the eastern part on Pretty Run, only the topmost beds of the shaly part of the series are exposed below 120 feet or more of Black Hand sandstone and it is not certain that the shale is uncovered as far east as the township line. Two miles west of the east line of the township and less than one mile south of the north line of the county, in the narrow postglacial cutting of Salt Creek, in two good sections, about 75 feet of Cuyahoga shale is exposed, overlain by 121 feet of Black Hand. In the western half of Eagle Township at many points along Salt Creek and

Mississippian System 49

Pike Run and their tributaries, low banks of the shale can be seen, while along the western line of the township and just over the line in Ross County at points almost in the very heads of the tributaries, there is 200 feet of shale between the streams and the Berne member, which there directly overlies the shale. This increased thickness of exposed shales is not due to the westward rise of the strata, but is almost wholly because the upper part of the shale 1s the direct equivalent of the Black Hand only four miles to the eastward.

The Cuyahoga formation of the western margin of the county consists of gray, argillaceous shales, slightly gritty and micaceous, usually with more or less carbonaceous matter distributed through it in the form of small fragments whose structure is indistinguishable to the unaided eye. Alternating with the shales are moderately coarse, reddish-brown sandstone layers which are usually three to six inches thick, the total thickness of the shale being much in excess of that of the sandstone. Their reddish-brown color is probably due to surface weathering, for the color of the unweathered rock deeper in the hills appears to be bluish-gray. In the western part of the township occasional sandstone strata are encountered with a thickness of two or three feet, at horizons where the ratio of sandstone to shale increases through a vertical thickness of several feet. These are the westward extensions of the thick beds of coarse sandstone and conglomerate which are present in the conglomerate area a short distance to the eastward.

The shales of the Cuyahoga are frequently exposed in the southwestern part of Harrison Township, in the B. & O. S. W. railroad cuts just across the line in Ross County. There are there many thin, reddish-brown sandstones up to a foot in thickness, scattered through greater thickness of shale.

In the extreme northwest corner of Richland Township, the Middle Fork of Salt Creek has cut a few feet into the shales below the Black Hand member.

The total thickness of the Cuyahoga shales in the Scioto Valley is about 300 feet, about half the thickness of the equivalent conglomerate to the eastward. As a result, the top of the Cuyahoga formation, when traced from the conglomerate area of Hocking County westward into the shale region, declines somewhat in altitude, contrary to the general easterly dip of the rocks. This can be easily detected across the western part of Vinton County.

The fauna of the Cuyahoga shales is almost negligible, so far as it is known at present. Two specimens of Grammysia hannibalensis Shumard have been obtained from the sandstone beds, one on Salt Creek at the "Narrows" section, the other on Pike Run near the north

The cause of the remarkable passage from conglomerate to shale within six or eight miles lies in the origin of the rocks themselves. They were originally formed as muds, sands, and gravels, layer on layer, which eventually hardened into shale, sandstone, and conglomerate.

It is clear from the study of these rocks over several counties! that at the time these rocks were forming, Ohio was not a region of hills, valleys, and streams, but of shallow seas in which sediments were being deposited. The eastern portion of Vinton, Hocking, and Fairfield counties was an area of accumulation, to a thickness of 600 feet, of coarse conglomerates and sandstones, under strong currents sweeping gravel from the southeast. The coarseness of the material, the abundance of cross bedding and its direction of slope to the northward all attest this. The conglomerates may be the result of delta growth under stream action, or bar development under strong oceanic currents; which is not clear.

The whole was later buried under the Coal Measures rocks, and in time became a land area subject to stream erosion. The Coal . Measures have since been removed from Fairfield and in part from Hocking County, where the structures in these conglomerates can be easily observed in the stream valleys and cliffs which have since been cut into rocks. In the central and eastern portions of Vinton County, however, the Coal Measures still cover the conglomerates from sight.

While these conglomerates were forming under the influence of northwardly sweeping currents, quiet water lay to the westward in which muds were settling, which have since been changed into the Cuyahoga shales. The thickness of this shale is about half that of the conglomerates, 300 feet. 'The shales of western Vinton County are of this sort. Between the area:of strong currents and gravel accumulations and the area of quiet water and mud accumulation, lay a zone in which the currents were of rapidly decreasing strength, in which the deposits grade from gravels into coarse sands, fine sands, then into muds with thin sandstones. This is the transition zone now exposed in Jackson, Eagle, Richland, and Harrison townships.

No fossils are found in the conglomerate area. Clearly the currents were too strong and tempestuous, and the sands and gravels too shifting, to permit the shell life of the sea floor to live there. But in the evenly bedded sandstones of western Vinton County, which show by their structure that such currents and shifting sands were not present, marine fossils are often found in abundance. The quieter sea floor of this area must have been favorable to shell fish of many sorts.

Logan Formation

The Logan formation consists of fine-grained sandstones, shaly sandstones, and sandy shales, with only minor amounts of coarse material. It is readily divisible into four members, three of which can be traced, with changes but without loss of essential character, from the Ohio River in Scioto County to Wayne County, 160 miles, and the Berne member from Vinton County to Wayne County, 120 miles. The sandstones are never as coarse as the Hocking County conglomerates of the Cuyahoga, and the shales rarely as soft and clayey as those of the Cuyahoga. The different members all carry fossils. The whole aggregate bespeaks much more uniform sea-floor conditions over wide areas, and much quieter wave and current action, such as can be readily understood on the assumption of deeper waters, farther from shore, than those which obtained in Cuyahoga time.

The Berne conglomerate. - This bed, although thin, is persistent throughout the entire western part of the county, with the possible exception of the southwest part of Harrison Township of which nothing is known. Apparently it is never more than two feet in thickness, but it is always present and very regular.

In Jackson Township it is uniformly about two feet thick and composed very largely of pebbles one-fourth to one-half inch in diameter. It decreases in thickness and the size of the pebbles diminishes both southward and westward.

Near the northern line of Richland Township, in the section onehalf mile north of Allensville (to be given later) it is 18 inches thick and composed largely of quartz pebbles one-fourth to one-half inch in diameter. One-half mile south of Allensville in the road and stream bed coming down to this town from the south, the conglomerate layer is 20 inches thick. Here many of the pebbles are three-eighths to onehalf inch in diameter, but they are mostly smaller. One and onehalf miles farther south, on the line between sections 17 and 20 rts only four to six inches thick. Two miles farther south, southwest, in the northeastern quarter of Section 31, it is from two to ten inches thick, the pebbles all less than one-fourth and mostly about one-eighth of an inch in diameter.

There is little to be said of it in Harrison Township. It has been seen at several points in the sections along the eastern line of the township, but it has not been observed west of this because of poor outcrops and less thorough search. As far as seen, it is persistently ten inches to one foot in thickness and composed, as usual, of evenly graded quartz pebbles from one-eighth to three-sixteenths of an inch in diameter and less.

mostly from one-eighth to three-sixteenths of an inch in diameter or less. It rests on the Black Hand member in the eastern part. Whether or not it rests directly on shales at any point in the western half has not been determined, but two and one-fourth miles west of the western line, in Ross County, it holds such a relationship.

The Berne member over Hocking and Fairfield counties forms the top of the great ledges of Black Hand conglomerate, and there is little resemblance to the overlying fine-grained sandstone of the Logan. In Jackson Township of Vinton County, similarly, its natural association seems to be with the underlying conglomeratic sandstone. By some observers the Berne might be aligned with the Cuyahoga rather than with the Logan, and the present writer thought of it in this way for years.

To understand it, the Berne must be considered over its whole extent. There is much in its character, structure, and relation to the underlying conglomerates, sandstones, and shales, for it rests on all at one place or another by a sharply defined contact, to show that this bed was formed after the strong current action of Cuyahoga time had ceased, when uniform conditions prevailed over the whole area. It is the result of smoothing off by gentle currents on the sea floor of the top of the high-standing Cuyahoga conglomerate areas, and the spreading of this coarse material over wider areas than the Cuyahoga conglomerates occupy. This current action was not too strong to prevent certain marine shells from living at all places on the floor at this time, for fossils are found in the Berne conglomerate at many places, even over the center of the maximum development of the Hocking Valley Black Hand conglomerate.

Considered as a conglomerate only, it would seem to belong with the underlying conglomerates, but its history belongs with the history of the Logan, and for that reason, it is here regarded as the result of the opening episode of Logan time. The underlying conglomerates were the source of the material in this opening episode. This was probably a submergence of the sea floor and deepening of the waters, with complete cessation of the strong local current action of Cuyahoga time, and the introduction over the sea floor of gentle bottom currents and widespread wave action which slowly dispersed the upper part of the high-standing masses of Cuyahoga or Black Hand conglomerate.

Byer sandstone. - This is a fine-grained, evenly bedded, yellow sandstone with occasional shaly layers. It is, however, very resistant and has stood in the walls of railroad cuts on the B. & O. S. W. for years. The beds are usually from three to six inches or one foot in thickness. It is readily distinguished from the underlying Black Hand which is coarser, more grayish in color, and weathers by breaking into blocks across the bedding.

Mississippian System 53

The thickness varies from 50 feet to about 90 feet. It is least in northeastern Jackson Township, increases somewhat to the south and more to the west. In the southwest corner of Jackson it is between 60 and 65 feet thick. Just north of Allensville in Richland Township, it is 55 feet, two miles to the south, 60 feet (barometer). Three and one-half miles south, southwest from the last, the interval obtained is 68 feet, again by barometer, but it is by no means certain that the base of the upper coarse zone which lies above this sandstone was seen at the last outcrop. This is on the Thomas Doles estate one mile north of the Jackson county line. At the "Narrows"' section on Salt Creek in Eagle Township, it is at least 75 feet thick. Two miles farther southwest on the road over the hills from Eagle Mills to Jimtown, it is about 90 feet thick. In Harrison Township of Ross County, two and one-fourth miles west of the Eagle township line, it is 116 feet thick.

The Byer sandstone thickens westward, in rough proportion as the underlying Cuyahoga formation decreases in thickness, the result of quiet current action on the ocean floor, which gradually filled up the irregular depressions left by the tempestuous local currents of Cuyahoga time.

It is often difficult or impossible to locate the exact top of the Byer member, because it passes very gradually into the Allensville, the lowest, earliest coarse streaks of which are very thin and easily escape detection. It is, furthermore, almost certain that the first few thin streaks which are present in one section may be absent a short distance away. Nevertheless, it is certain that the bed more than doubles in thickness in 16 miles, as the thickness of the Cuyahoga decreases to the westward, away from the Hocking Valley conglomerate area.

Fossils are not uncommon, and in places are very abundant. ° Chonetes sp. and Rhipidomella sp., always the same species, are the only ones noted.

The Allensville bed. - This bed is distinguished by the occurrence of excellently assorted, very coarse sands or very fine quartz pebbles. The largest grains are about one-eighth inch or three millimeters in diameter. and range down to about one-half or one millimeter. The size diminishes somewhat to the west, where they are commonly one-thirty-second to one-sixteenth of an inch in diameter. The assortment is remarkable. This material is distributed in thin beds from a fraction of an inch to a few feet in thickness, which alternate with fine-grained, yellow sandstones which in themselves are indistinguishable from those of the Byer. The coarse streaks are usually thin in the lower part, becoming thicker in passing upward, the fine-grained beds becoming thinner and disappearing at the same time. The top- most bed of coarse material is usually. several feet thick and is the best developed and most persistent. The top of the member is always very sharp with no transition to the overlying Vinton beds. Occasionally the thinnest beds of coarse material consist of a parting between two fine-grained beds on which one layer of the coarse grains, one grain thick, has been laid down. These grains are packed until they touch, as in a mosaic, but one grain does not lie on another. The thickness of the member is seldom determined exactly, for the reason indicated in the discussion of the Byer sandstone, that the exact base is so uncertain. The bed is always high in iron content, and the coarse streaks are cemented with limonite which is probably a secondary product of recent weatherings.

In the northwest quarter of Section 4, Jackson Township, on the head of Goose Creek near the north line of the county, the section of this horizon is as follows from the top downward:

Hee eee eo ne aioe ace men Me og << BSG see eae 1 3 Massive. stine-erained-sandstonen a asa cetera 4 0 Very coarse sandstone, not as pebbly as the lower one....... 1 0 Pine-grained Gandstone. 0 no. oc Seale oe hoe Rare See 2or3 0 Very coarse sandstone, or better, a fine conglomerate composed of pebbles 3 to 3 mm. in diameter, very evenly

Near the middle of the south line of the township at the forks of the road in the southeast quarter of Section 34, this horizon occurs in the stream bank, the base being possibly below the stream bed. This outcrop and the one near Allensville, next described, should be considered the type outcrops of the member, since the name is given from this locality. The exposed portion is here 12 feet thick and consists of alternating layers of fine conglomerate, coarse sandstone, and fine-grained sandstone. The coarse streaks are more abundant in the lowermost three feet where they are mostly two or three inches thick, alternating with fine-grained layers. The topmost two feet consists almost entirely of this pebble conglomerate, the pebbles being up to one-eighth inch or three millimeters in diameter. The interval between the lower and upper pebble layers consists largely of fine-grained sandstones with a few thin coarser sandstones and pebble streaks of a few inches each. In the extreme southwest corner of the township in Section 31, on the line between Richland and Eagle townships, it is 16 feet in thickness, the uppermost three feet of which forms a well marked pebble horizon, the pebbles seldom exceeding one-sixteenth of an inch in diameter. The remainder of the bed is composed very largely of fine-grained sandstones with numerous thin streaks of small pebbles on the bedding planes.

Mississippian System 55

The member is present at all points in the western half of Richland Township, wherever search has been made for it, unless, as 1s occasionally the case, it has been removed by the erosion plane between the Waverly and Coal Measures series. The only piace in this township where its thickness has been determined is in the section north of Allensville near the north line, where it is not certain that the base was seen, but it is at least 13 feet thick. The uppermost three feet, eight inches, consists of small, rounded pebbles one to two millimeters in diameter with a few thin streaks of fine-grained material; the lower portion is but poorly shown and consists largely of fine-grained, Byerlike sandstones with numerous thin streaks of small pebbles on the bedding planes. The more striking pebble bed at the top of this zone has been seen at several points in the southwest part of the township but the outcrops are not good.

It is well shown at at least one point in Harrison Township, west central part of Section 4, where the old Jackson-Tarleton road descends to Salt Creek. It is there over 15 feet thick. Usually, however, it is only poorly shown and occasionally, as at Ray, was removed during the post-Waverlian period of erosion.

The Allensville bed is poorly shown, when shown at all, in Eagle Township, but it is persistent throughout. In the "'Narrows'' section only the topmost eight inches is shown in position. In the northwest corner of Section 25 south of Pretty Run, it is at least eight feet thick, the topmost foot consisting of coarse sand grains or very fine pebbles, the remainder of thin streaks of such material interfingered between greater thicknesses of fine-grained sandstones like those of the Byer.

The Vinton member. - The Vinton is an uninteresting series of sandstones and shales. The sandstones are fine grained, thinner bedded, and more platy and harder than those of the Byer. In color they are more apt to be gray than those of the Byer, although yellow, due to weathering, is common. Under cover, where weathering has had no effect, they are undoubtedly bluish gray. The shales are gray and sandy. 'They are more abundant in the lower 40 or 50 feet, just above the Allensville bed, whereas the sandstones are more abundant higher up in the member. Fossils are seen only rarely.

After the Waverly formations had accumulated to an unknown thickness, the region was uplifted and became a land area. Streams carved out valleys with hills between them. When the Coal Measures were laid down on the irregular surface thus formed, the valleys were filled first and finally the hills were covered up and preserved. These irregularities can be readily detected, although it is seldom possible to trace an old valley or hill any distance, and never possible to see one as we see them today.

In the northern and central part of Jackson Township, as far as observed, the Vinton member is 70 to 90 feet thick. Over the southern tier of sections, this interval has been reduced to about 18 to 40 feet. - At the locality in the southeast quarter of Section 34, where the Allensville bed is well exposed, the overlying sandy shales are reduced to about 18 feet. In the hill northeast of Allensville (see section) on the south line of the township, it is about 40 feet.

In Richland Township, one mile south of Allensville, very near the point where sections 8, 9, 16, and 17 touch, the base of the Coal Measures is only 60 feet above the base of the Logan (determined by barometer) and the Allensville bed, at least the topmost conspicuous portion, was removed before the Coal Measures were formed. One mile south of the last locality, the base of the Coal Measures is again at an elevation of 30 or 35 feet above the coarse zone, with the usual sandy shales intervening. Three miles south, southwest of Allensville in the southwest quarter of Section 20, where the Allensville-Byer road passes up a small valley to the divide between Middle Fork of Salt Creek and Pigeon's Roost Creek, a few small outcrops show, not very well it is true, how the erosion plane is here above the stream bed and there below it. In Section 31 two miles southwest of the last, on the land of Thomas Doles, it again lies only a few feet above the Allensville. Best of all, however, are the massive Coal Measures sandstones which have been abruptly let down into the Logan at Richland on the B. & O. S. W. railroad, within the Richland township line.

In Harrison Township, three-fourths of a mile northeast of Ray in the southeast corner of the township, in the section to be described later, this erosion plane has cut away the Allensville pebble bed and a portion of the underlying sandstones, leaving a total thickness of the Logan of only 55 feet. One mile northwest of this point, where the road goes over the hill in the northwest corner of Section 35, the base of the Coal Measures lies at least 65 feet above the top of this pebble bed (barometric determination). Adopting the thickness just given for the combined Byer and Allensville beds, this places the thickness of the Logan formation at 135 feet, an increase of 80 feet in about one mile, due entirely to the irregularity of the erosion plane.

The relation of a 30-inch coal bed to this unconformity was carefully worked out with the aid of core tests of the coal, in the eastern part of Section 25, in the southeast portion of Harrison Township. The abrupt disappearance of the bed greatly puzzled the owners. Occurrences of the bed were known some 500 yards apart, but between them it could not be found, even in core holes. Inspection of the scattered test cores and the poor outcrops between these localities showed Logan sandstones extending to an altitude 50 or 55 feet above level of the 30-inch bed, an old Logan hill which had projected, islandlike, above the swamp which eventually became the 30-inch bed. A second bed a few inches thick reported to overlie two feet of fire clay, which lies normally 55 feet above the 30-inch coal, passed over the old Logan hill without interruption. This relation shows that the hill had been completely buried under Coal Measures sediments before the second coal swamp was formed. Possibly if search had been made for the upper bed a little to one side, it would have been found absent and that the hill had risen too high to be entirely covered by this second swamp. It appears certain that some of this old land surface, on which the earliest Coal Measures rocks were formed, was too high to admit of the formation of the upper bed.

In the extreme southeast corner of Eagle Township on the line between Eagle and Jackson townships, a roughly measured section shows 75 feet of the Vinton below the Coal Measures. The pre-Pennsylvanian erosion plane in this township was not cut down to the extent that is noticed farther east and southeast.

Sections Of The Waverly Rocks

Following are typical sections of the Waverly of western Vinton County, with an additional one from within Ross County. These exhibit all phases of the Waverly of this region.

In the northwest corner of Jackson Township in the western half of Section 5, on a small stream entering Pretty Run from the north, the following strata were measured, the thicker members by barometer:

Allensville member, at least 4 feet, top not shown. Fr. tne 2 Hard, fine-grained sandstone, belonging in the middleiof the Allensvillesepssssem on rr <tt e eeenetees 1 6 1 Coarse sandstone, consisting of very coarse sand onsimallipebbless amacrine eee ee 2 6

Fine-grained, yellow sandstones, some beds as much as one foot thick, but much of it tending to-split:more thinly, .. 2040 Soe ncn gee ee 50 0

Coarse sandstones with numerous scattered quartz pebbles and occasional pebble streaks, none of which are more than two or three inches thick. The pebbles show a marked decrease in number and size from what is present only a mile or two to the northward. These sandstones split readily on exposure into layers three or four inches or more in thickness, whereas the ones in the upper part of the formation to the north, split with drmculty- or not-atvall, ..2s6 +. ee ae 30 0

The best section which has been seen in Eagle Township, in fact the best that has been seen in several townships, is on Salt Creek, threefourths of a mile south of the Hocking county line in Section 11. Salt Creek is one of the numerous streams flowing out from the glaciated area which previous to the period of glaciation flowed northward. Thrown across the divide above its former headwaters by the damming action of the ice, it has cut across this divide and has held to the new course thus formed since the melting of the ice sheet. The section here described is exposed in the east wall of the valley of Salt Creek in the narrow portion near where formerly stood this old divide. The stream has cut against the bank at this point to such an extent that perhaps 150 feet or more of the section is exposed, but it is so steep that most of it is inaccessible. Just south of the bank and distant perhaps 50 yards, a road winds up over the hill and the cuttings for it have exposed the strata above those seen in the stream bank, so that, in all, an almost continuous section of over 350 feet can be measured.

Mississippian System 59

The measurements are all by hand level, except the thickness of the Cuyahoga which was determined by barometer and the thickness of the Black Hand which was obtained by deducting this barometric figure from the elevation of the top of the Black Hand above Salt Creek, 197 feet, determined by the hand level.

This section is of great importance because of the rapid change from sandstone into shale observed in the Black Hand farther westward, and it is fortunate that it 1s so exceptionally well exposed.

than two or three inches thick, usually weathering into thin laminae; poorly shown........... 18 0 1 Hard, light gray or buff, sandy shales, very PEUCEUEIN Ot WEllSHOwW De ee niet eerie oe ieee 27 0

The topmost eight inches only is here exposed. This is a hard bed composed of quartz pebbles all less than one-eighth of an inch thick. That

Consisting of quartz pebbles, mostly about oneeighth of an inch in diameter but not infrequently one-fourth to one-half inch in diameter..... 1 0

Moderately coarse, gray or yellowish sandstones, much coarser than those of the Logan formation layers, usually two to six inches, rarely one foot thick, tending to split into thinner layers on weathering. Occasional shaly layers are not uncommon but they are not of sufficient importance to consider the section transitional to the shale phase of the formation which is found only two or three miles to the westward. The topmost 50 feet is exposed in the road, the remainder in the upper part of the stream bank. Base of formation not well defined, about 10 feet being transitional from the Cuyahoga shale to the Black Hand. This portion 1s included in the measurements of the former. The lowermost 20 feet of the Black Hand, as here defined, appears to be more shaly than the mass of the formation; this shows itself in the somewhat less massive appearance of this portion of the cliff.. 121 | 0

Gray, clay shales alternating with sandstones. The shales are gritty, micaceous, and with a certain amount of carbonaceous material disseminated in small fragments; the sandstones are moderately coarse, (coarser than those of the Black Hand) and usually a rich brownish red in color, probably due to surface oxidation, and not original. This color has not been observed in the sandstones of the Black Hand at this point. The shale beds are much thicker than the sandstone layers. In the uppermost transitional eight or ten feet, the shales and sandstones are of about equal thickness, the sandstones retaining their coarse nature and reddish color through the transition. Although the contact is not such that one can place his finger on it, a change other than mere passage from a condition yielding a more shaly sediment to those yielding a sandstone is apparent, both in the fact that the sandstones of the Black Hand weather readily into thinner laminae, while those of the Cuyahoga do not, and in the coarser grain of the Cuyahoga sandstones. A single specimen of Grammysia hannibalensis of the type found in northern Ohio was found in the sandstones near the top of the Cuyahoga... 75 0

Mississippian System 61

One-half mile southwest of this section, on the line between sections 10 and 15, and on the west bank of Salt Creek, about 70 feet of Cuyahoga shale is shown in the steep bank above the road, the uppermost five or ten feet of which 1s transitional to the Black Hand. Above this 45 feet of the Black Hand is shown. The rocks of both formations are indistinguishable in character from those of the same horizons in the section just given, and the transition from one formation to the next is, apparently, exactly similar.

Allensville member Base not certainly seen. The topmost 3 feet 8 inches consists of small pebbles with thin streaks of fine-grained sandstone; pebbles ranging in thickness from one to two millimeters. The lower portion consists largely of fine-grained sandstone with a few thin beds of small pebbles or very coarse sand like that in the upper part. 13 0

2 Moderately coarse sandstone, no pebbles noted, yellowish or brownish in color, but otherwise like those immediately below. Color doubtless CMeRCOVWeatnerinie © ance. ea acs. aris otd oo.s se 24 0 1 Moderately coarse sandstone, blue gray in color, showing method of weathering typical of the

The following section was measured three-quarters of a mile northeast of Ray and a half mile above the Corinth church, at the sharp angle of the road near the east line of Section 35:

Coal Measures (Pennsylvanian system) Ft In Consisting of coarse sandstone and sandy shales. The lowermost two feet is a coarse sandstone with an abundance of cherty limestone pebbles SOnTainine DLYOZ08 72. ss cee ed eso ee 34 0 Mississippian system Logan formation, total thickness, 55 ft. 2 in. Byer member

Javers ics cane ais sine eR a on ot een 16 0 2 Gray clay shale, soft, with little grit.......... 5 6 1 Fine-grained, yellow sandstones, beds one foot

Alternating gray, sandy shales and moderately coarse, yellowish or grayish sandstones; in the lowermost 10 feet the former are from four to eighteen inches thick, the latter from two to four inches; in the upper half of the cut the shales and sandstones are about equal, estimated..... 20 0

A very good section was secured on the east side of the high ridge between Poe Run and Watnut Creek in the southeast quarter of Section 22, Harrison Township, Ross County, two miles west of the Vinton Most of the section is exposed on the side of a road which passes up over a steep hill out of the head of a tributary of Poe Run, the lower part in a drain just south of this road. The Logan formation here has a total thickness of more than 175 feet, of which 116 feet, Commencing at the top, the section is as

Very poorly shown but appears, from the loose debris, to consist of the usual thinly bedded sandstones and sandy shales. By barometer to nil top Sx aaa rem re ek es ae ahd 6 eer te rae ol nee

Consists chiefly of fine-grained, yellow sandstones, sometimes two to three inches thick, with many bedding planes covered with small quartz pebbles, all less than one-eighth of an inch in diameter. Both at the top and bottom of the horizon there is a bed of such pebbles, CARN .ONe LOOtIN: LOLCKNESS S45 08s avs So asta sates

Mostly hard, tough, sandy, gray shale with a single 18-inch sandstone near the middle and a 6 inch one near the top; no sharp contact between this member and the one below........

Fine-grained, yellow sandstones, layers 8 inches to 18 inches thick with thinner layers of hard, sandy shale not at all like that of the Cuyahoga eter, usually less, embedded in clay shale, the pebbles, however, comprising the bulk of the bed. Lower contact sharply defined to within Pre ECariM Ge te wis a ooeseicts ov to rae ee 8-12

Andrews, E. B., Report of labors in the second geological district, during the year 1870. Chapter III, Vinton County. Geol. Surv. Ohio; Rept. Progress in 1870, pp. 96-106. Contains references to the Waverly conglomerate (Black Hand) and Logan, which are little more than incidental, in Swan, Jackson, and Richland townships. The chapter contains abundant data on the coal and iron of the Coal Measures.

Stratigraphic And Economic Features

The great group of rocks now known as the Pennsylvanian was first defined in Pennsylvania by Henry D. Rogers for the United States Government in 1838. It is of enormous importance for its coals, clays, shales, limestones, iron ores, sandstones, oil, and gas. The many thick coal beds in it are the dependence of great industries and provide heat for millions of homes. Its clays and shales are manufactured into a wide variety of articles for the comfort and protection of man. The limestones of this system not only enrich the residual soils but serve many useful purposes. Its iron ores were largely instrumental in the early and permanent development of the iron industry in America. Further, the sandstone at the surface provides building stone, and those deeply buried often act as storage reservoirs for the natural hydrocarbons, oil and gas. In the Appalachian field Pennsylvanian rocks cover an area of more than 50,000 square miles in central and western Pennsylvania, eastern Ohio, western Maryland, western Virginia, West Virginia, eastern Kentucky, eastern Tennessee, and northern Alabama. It is made up of four formations which are, in ascending order, the Pottsville, Allegheny, Conemaugh, and Monongahela.

In Vinton County the Pottsville and Allegheny formations are represented in full and the Conemaugh in part. The area covered by Pennsylvanian rocks is 331 square miles. Such beds appear only in small areas in eastern Eagle and Harrison townships, extend over most of Jackson and Richland, cover all of Swan and Clinton, except small patches along valley floors, and overspread entirely Brown, Knox, Madison, Elk, Vinton, and Wilkesville. The thickness of Pennsylvanian rocks in Vinton County is approximately 593 feet. The kinds represented are sandstones, conglomerates, shales, coals, clays, limestones, flints, and iron ores, most of which occur with a variety of both physical and chemical properties.

Pottsville Formation

The Pottsville, the basal formation of the Pennsylvanian system, is represented in full thickness in Vinton County, although some members found elsewhere in the State are wanting in this territory. It comprises all the strata from the top of the Mississippian system, upon which it rests unconformably, to the base of the Brookville coal, the oldest member of the overlying Allegheny formation. Rocks of this age are found at the surface in every township except Knox and Wilkesville but appear in small areas only in Brown, Madison, Vinton, Eagle, and Harrison. This formation has contributed to the development of the region for many years and bids fair to aid materially in future expansion. Its iron ores were worked for the old charcoal furnaces and its coal beds have provided fuel for distant markets and for local needs. Some of the clays and shales in this group of rocks are now becoming important. The thickness of the Pottsville formation in Vinton County is about 225 feet. This varies somewhat from place to place, owing to the fact that these rocks were laid down upon the uneven Mississippian floor, and because of the thinning and disappearing of beds higher in the formation. 'This formation is subdivided into a number of members which will be considered in order, beginning with the oldest.

Ft. In. Brookville....... Clay, plastic, moderately regular....| 4 6 Shalé,"eraya siliceous. 0. ont 2 6 Wionestas: 340. eeesle Coalerethin'cottennabsente sane ee 3 Tionesta.........| Clay, plastic, only locally present.... 1 6 Shale 'and 'sandstone wasn nene et es 19 2 Upper Mercer....| Ore, moderately persistent.......... 4

Pennsylvanian System Harrison Ore

The Harrison member, generally an impure iron ore, was named from deposits present in Scioto County and was formerly worked for iron smelting at Harrison Furnace. It 1s noteworthy not for its economic value, but for its relation to both the Pennsylvanian and Mississippian rocks, as it was deposited along the irregular zone of contact between these systems, and as it contains in many places material from both. It lies in the Pottsville but it is bedded in the eroded surface of the Maxville limestone, or where this is absent on that of the Logan strata. Its composition is variable In-places it is composed of a brecciated mass of siliceous fragments cemented by iron compounds. This siliceous material appears to be what was once pieces of Maxville limestone as it contains imperfect impressions of marine animal life, and as it is usually present not far distant from Maxville areas. In general, these pieces are quite angular, which suggests their origin from shore deposits by wave action or from land areas by weathering agencies. These limestone fragments through solution lost their calcium and magnesium carbonate and by replacement gained additional silica. In other words, such masses are apparently the remains of deposits of Maxville limestone that were broken up by terrestrial and littoral forces, strewn over the eroded Mississippian plain by waves and currents, then covered by Pottsville sediments, and later cemented by iron compounds deposited from ground waters that circulated along this contact zone. At other places the Harrison member 1s a mixture of angular, siliceous fragments and of well-rounded quartz pebbles, the whole cemented by iron compounds. The pebbles are similar in every respect to those that compose the Sharon conglomerate which in many places lies directly above the ore or not far distant. In a few localities this ore is a rather pure ferrous carbonate or, where weathered, a hydrous ferric oxide.

The distribution of the Harrison member is quite local in Vinton County as deposits were observed only in the western part of Richland Township. Near the head of Pleasant Valley in Section 30, small masses of typical material are present but poorly exposed at an elevation of about 800 feet, along the contact between shales of the Waverly and sandstones of the Pottsville. The deposits exposed vary in thickness from 3 inches to 1 foot 4 inches, and in character from loosely cemented breccia to very impure iron ore. The Harrison member is also well represented on the headwaters of Kelley Branch in Section 20. Along the road in the southeastern part of the area, the following rocks were measured:

Pennsylvanian System 69

Pottsville formation Ft. In Sandstone, soft, micaceous, cross-bedded.............. 8 0 Breccia, with pebbles and sand, Harrison............. 8

The elevation of the Harrison member at this place is approximately 780 feet, and the thickness of the bed is 4 to 10 inches. It is made up of angular fragments from decay of siliceous limestone, of quartz pebbles, and coarse sand similar to that in the Sharon conglomerate, and of iron oxides which are the chief bonding component. Other deposits were also observed along western tributaries of Kelley Branch in Section 20. The Harrison member in Vinton County has no qualities that fit it for use and it is of stratigraphic-interest purely.

Sharon Conglomerate

The first prominent stratum at the base of the Pottsville formation is a massive conglomerate which was called Olean, in 1875, by J. P. Lesley, from exposures near Olean, New York; and Sharon, about 18.79, by I C. White, from outcrops near Sharon in western Pennsylvania. The latter name was finally adopted by members of the Geological Survey of Ohio. This stratum is widely but irregularly distributed as it extends with many wants from Cattaraugus County, New York, across northwestern Pennsylvania, central Ohio, and eastern Kentucky, into Virginia and Tennessee. In the entire field the Sharon conglomerate is erratic in thickness as well as in outline. Deposits in vertical dimension vary from 1 to 200 feet or more in Ohio and are not greatly different in Pennsylvania and New York. The usual measurement, however, is between 20 and 100 feet.

The deposits are massive tn character, thus appearing to have been laid down with little interruption. The rock is highly cross bedded, a feature made more prominent by weathering. Texturally the Sharon member varies from a coarse conglomerate to a fine-grained sandstone. The chief cementing components are iron compounds and clay matter. The pebbles and sand grains are composed almost entirely of quartz and quartzite with a clear to milky color. The particles are well rounded and polished, thus showing the extent of abrasion from transportation.

The Sharon conglomerate, which is so massively and characteristically developed in northwestern Jackson and northeastern Pike counties, is feebly represented in western Vinton' County. With the exception of a few thin, irregular lenses of sandstone found in southern Richland Township, the member is absent throughout the wide area:in which it should appear. It is wanting through lack of deposition, as the Mississippian rocks in this region remained as a land area until after these coarse sediments had been laid down elsewhere. The following record, taken north of Richland Furnace in Section 4, Richland Township, shows the character of the material and the position of the bed with reference to the Sciotoville clay and Vinton shale.

Local lenses of sandstone representing the Sharon member are also present along Pleasant Valley and Kelley Branch in the western part of Richland Township and along the ridges in the southeastern part of Harrison. The deposits vary from 1 to 20 feet in thickness and are sandstone and not conglomerate. They have not been utilized within the area.

Sharon Clay

The Sharon clay lies directly below the Sharon or No. 1 coal. These beds are found in only one small area in Vinton County which is in the southern part of Section 29, Richland Township. The clay is thin, siliceous, and impure, and therefore has no value for ceramic purposes.

The Sharon or No. 1 coal, locally known also as the Briar Hill, Mahoning Valley, Palmyra, Akron, Wadsworth, Massillon, and Jackson Shaft, owing to its presence with minable thickness in these localities, is the lowest coal bed in the Pottsville formation of Ohio and rests in most places on or only a few feet above the Sharon conglomerate. It lacks continuity in this State, being absent far more often than present. This is due to the fact that it was deposited only in the low basins that were eroded in the Mississippian floor at the close of this period.

The Sharon coal is absent in Vinton County with the exception of one small patch near drainage level in south central Section 29, Richland Township, where it has been mined in a small way for local use. The following measurements were taken in an old mine on the Barbee

The upper stratum varies in thickness from 7 to 8 inches and is a hard, dense, cannel coal. The lower bench expands from 1 foot to 1 foot 6 inches and is of a semi-cannel nature. The average thickness of the member is stated to be approximately 2 feet, and its position as nearly as could be determined is about 20 feet below the Sciotoville clay and only a few feet above the Logan shale. The bed is reported to bé present also on the adjacent property to the east, but it was not exposed. Elsewhere in western Vinton County the Sharon coal appears to be wanting or to be at most only a few inches in thickness. The value of the known deposit is small as the bed is local in extent and as the coal is somewhat shaly. The main use is for a local supply

Sharon Ore

Locally in parts of Ohio a thin bed of iron ore, either kidney or blackband, is present directly on or not far above the Sharon. coal. The member is of massive origin and bears an abundant fauna. It was not found in Vinton County but is present in many places in Jackson, Pike, and Scioto counties.

Sciotoville Clay

The Sciotoville clay is another lower Pottsville member which lacks continuity but which is recognized with a degree of certainty over a wide area. In Ohio it is present locally from Akron in Summit County to the Ohio River in Scioto County, and in Kentucky it extends southward with continuity and good thickness from the Ohio River in Greenup and Lewis counties, through Carter into Elliott and Brown. At present the important fields are near Scioto Furnace in Scioto County, Ohio, and near Olive Hill in Carter County, Kentucky. Where the lower members of the Pottsville formation are present, the normal position of the Sciotoville clay is, on the average, 20 to 40 feet above the Sharon coal and approximately the same disi2 VINTON COUNTY tance below the Quakertown coal. Owing to the fact, however, that basal Pottsville strata are wanting in large areas, this clay may be absent, or if present, it may lie on or only a few feet above the Vinton sandstone, the Maxville limestone, or the Sharon conglomerate.

The Sciotoville clay is variable both in composition and in structure. It is represented by a variety of clays which are called flint, semi-flint, plastic, and "pink eye." The flint clay is hard, homogeneous, and non-plastic. It breaks in any direction with a conchoidal fracture and weathers down into sharp, angular fragments. The semi-flint clay has much the same characteristics as the flint clay, except that it is somewhat plastic and is marked with some slickensides. As the name suggests, the chief property of plastic clay is plasticity. It is usually marked with many slickensides and is easily reduced by weathering. The "pink eye" is simply a plastic clay which is mottled or stained with iron oxide pigments so that it has a pink color. These clays may be bedded in almost any order, although when all the varieties are present, the usual arrangement in ascending order is '"'pink eye," semi-flint, flint, and plastic. However, the four kinds are seldom present at one place, but any combination of the four may be expected.

In Vinton County deposits of Sciotoville clay are confined to Richland, Harrison, Eagle, and Jackson townships, and in general they appear to be small and uncertain. Plastic clay is the common material on the horizon but flint clay is occasionally present.

Richland Township. - In Richland Township the Sciotoville clay is due above drainage along Middle Fork, Riley Run, and-Kelley Branch in the northwestern part; along Pleasant Valley, Burton Hollow, and Richland Hollow in the southwestern part; and along Little Raccoon Creek in the southeastern part. Owing to the pronounced disconformity at the base of the Pottsville formation, however, the member is absent far more often than present.

The Sciotoville clay was formerly mined in a small way on the Richland Furnace land near central Section 4. A composite record is given below:

Pottsville formation - Concluded Ft. In. Glayatinits: COOdsem ae. 4 0 Clay, plastic, part crt nit + 0 Clay, red, "'pink eye'"'.... 6 0 Sanastone, linhity Clay -DONGEU a... care vs bo ere 8 2 0 aver rtr Ree ei RCM INE ree eo meet cela. die (ee ts seit 22 0 Sandstone, coarse-grained, Sharon conglomerate equiva-

The flint clay is of good quality and the underlying plastic clay of fair purity. In northeastern Section 33, the Sciotoville clay was exposed just above water level near where the road to the ridge north leaves the stream. At least 5 feet of semi-flint clay of fair quality is present. Its elevation is about 770 feet and its position nearly 100 feet below the Lower Mercer or No. 3 coal. The member is reported to be present at other places also in this vicinity. In the east fork of Burton Hollow near central Section 33, flint clay underlain by "'pink eye" outcrops just above the stream bed. The thickness was not determined as the exposure is poor. The flint clay is hard, light-colored, and pure. Along the stream in south central Section 29, on the Barbee property, the Sciotoville clay outcrops near the level of the township road and at an elevation of about 770 feet. The following measurements were obtained:

Diet lemma nanan mew Carte cet 00s Soh Ni Bie OES co PUR eas fore Saas ahh cA Z DHaletdankecanbOnlaCcOUS. .5<. 2 mia Se eo he a ae eee DECAL oWEATHETEC. HL UCKICUCENY: stu c< vivd Wises lnigiaibee vie nd cals dies Clay,. plastic, very siliceous, Huckleberry...........000005- Shale, dark, carbonaceous, very siliceous..............-+-- Clay, flint, plant-marked, good

The flint clay at this place is of good quality and is reported to be 3 to 4 feet thick. Along the road at the head of the hollow in northeastern Section 30, the Sciotoville member is present at an elevation of about 800 feet and is represented by 2 feet 6 inches of very siliceous, plastic clay. Its position is 96 feet below the Lower Mercer coal and about 20 feet above the Vinton shale. Along the road near the forks of Little Raccoon Creek in southeastern Section 23, the Sciotoville member appears just above drainage at an elevation of 750 feet. The record obtained is given below:

The Sciotoville member appears to be poorly represented along Middle Fork, Riley Run, and Kelley Branch in northwestern Richland Township. It is absent over most of the area and where present is thin, siliceous, and impure.

Harrison Township. - In Harrison Township basal Pottsville members are found near the summits of the ridges in the eastern part. The Sciotoville member is only locally present and is usually represented by impure plastic clay rather than by high-grade flint clays. On the W. H. Doles farm in south central Section 36, a small quantity of flint clay was mined by stripping. The clay is of good quality but the deposit appears to be only a local lens. The position of the bed is on or only a few feet above the Sharon conglomerate, at this place represented by about 20 feet of coarse-grained sandstone. The following record, taken along the ridge road in east central Section 35, shows the position of the Sciotoville member with reference to other beds in the Pottsville and Logan formations:

Siliceous, plastic clay was also observed on the horizon at a few places in sections 25, 26, and 23, and in addition thick deposits of "pink eye' clay are locally present. The following record, taken near the forks of the road in east central Section 27, is representative of this phase:

Pennsylvanian System Lo

The ganister associated with the clay at this place is hard, dense, and argillaceous, and is very similar in character to that found with the Sciotoville member in the Scioto Furnace field of Scioto County. The beds are generally thin and are uncertain in extent and thickness. The "pink eye" clay is highly colored due to severe weathering.

Eagle Township. - No deposits of Sciotoville clay of merit were observed along the few ridges in the eastern part of Eagle Township on which Pottsville rocks are present. The scattered exposures which are found show only siliceous, plastic clay from 3 to 5 feet thick.

Jackson Township. - Basal Pottsville members, including the Sharon conglomerate, Sharon coal, and Sciotoville clay, appear to be wanting through lack of deposition throughout most of Jackson Township. At a few places the Sciotoville member is marked by a siliceous, plastic clay or by "pink eye." Flint clay of good quality was found only in central Section 26, where it was exposed in a ravine at an elevation of 935 feet. The bed is more than 3 feet thick and the material very pure. Its position is about 30 feet above the Logan formation.

The deposits of Sciotoville clay in Vinton County appear to be too local in extent and too variable in character to be utilized as the basis for large ceramic operations. The area of most promise is in Richland Township and extends from Richland Furnace in Section 4 northwestward to Pleasant Valley in Section 29. It should be thoroughly tested by the core drill, however, as the outcrop indications are that the deposits are small and widely isolated. The flint clay exposed in this locality is of good quality, well fitted for making high-heat duty refractory ware. The plastic clay of the Sciotoville member found here and elsewhere in the county is of poor quality as it 1s generally very siliceous, in many places ferruginous, and ranks not better than a building brick clay.

Anthony Coal

The Anthony coal was named in 1870 by E. B. Andrews from a deposit on the farm of Samuel Anthony in Section 7, Coal Township, Jackson County. Its position is directly above the Sciotoville clay and about midway in the interval between the Sharon and Quakertown coals, and its distribution is coextensive with that of the Sciotoville clay. The bed is generally thin, averaging about 4 inches and in few places expanding to more than 1 foot. In places it is represented only by a soot streak or by a few inches of dark, coaly clay. The Anthony member varies in quality from a rather pure fuel to a bony, carbonaceous shale and also from ordinary bituminous to dense cannel coal. The overlying shales frequently contain brackish water fossils in abundance.

In Vinton County the Anthony coal outcrops locally in Richland, Harrison, Eagle, and Jackson townships, but it is everywhere thin and generally impure. The usual thickness is about 4 inches. The following record, taken at the forks of the road in central Section 25, Richland Township, shows the Anthony coal above normal in both thickness and purity:

In the southwestern part of this township the member is usually represented by a soot streak or by a few inches of carbonaceous shale. The same is true in Eagle and Jackson townships. In Vinton County, the Anthony coal has no economic value but is of interest only for its stratigraphic relations.

The name "Huckleberry"" has been applied locally, both in the Olive Hill field of Kentucky and in the Sciotoville field of Ohio, to a bed of clay and to its thin overlying coal, the positions of which are not far above the Sciotoville clay and Anthony coal. Such deposits are lenticular in character and very patchy and uncertain in extent. These members were observed at only a few places in Vinton County and have no value worthy of consideration.

Guinea Fowl Ore

An iron ore to which the name Guinea Fowl was applied by the miners who worked such deposits for Scioto Furnace, operated from 1829 to 1892 in Bloom Township, Scioto County, is occasionally present in the lower part of the Pottsville formation of southern Ohio. It represents an ore horizon rather than an ore stratum, as the deposits occur at various positions in a shale stratum and are widely scattered. The position of the ore may change from 1 to as much as 20 feet above the Anthony coal, but the usual interval is between 5 and 15 feet. The member varies in thickness from 1 inch to 2 feet but averages nearly 6 inches. It may be represented by a single ore stratum or by

At the forks of the road east of the Darby School in Section 35, Richland Township, the Guinea Fowl ore, 4 to 6 inches thick, is exposed at an elevation of 765 feet. Its position is nearly 120 feet below the Lower Mercer limestone. Small quantities of this ore were formerly mined by stripping near the forks of the road in central Section 25, where the bed is about 6 inches thick and approximately 8 feet above the Anthony coal. The following record, taken near the forks of Little Raccoon Creek in southeastern Section 23, shows its position with reference to the Sciotoville clay:

The ore, a siliceous limonite, is made up of small ore kidneys cemented by iron oxides into a firm mass. The weathered faces in many cases have the appearance of a conglomerate of ore nodules. The member was also observed at other places in central and western Richland Township.

The Guinea Fowl ore is moderately persistent and has fair thickness in eastern Harrison Township. The following record, taken on the property of William Scott in southeastern Section 24, shows the position of the ore with reference to the Quakertown coal:

Along the road that leads from the head of the hollow to the ridge east in southeastern Section 24, the Guinea Fowl ore was well exposed at an elevation of 890 feet. The ore is siliceous and sparingly fossiliferous. Its thickness here is 1 foot 4 inches and its position 37 feet above the Allensville conglomerate and 45 feet below the Bear Run coal. An outcrop of this member at an elevation of 850 feet was ob- served along the road in the east central part of Section 35. The bed is 8 inches thick and lies only a few feet above the Sciotoville clay. The Guinea Fowl member is locally made up of two or more ore benches as shown in the following measurements obtained along the ridge road near the forks in northeastern Section 26:

The Guinea Fowl member was also observed on a knob of the ridge near the road forks in southeastern Section 27. The bed is 4 to 6 inches thick and siliceous in character. It bears a few fossils which are not well preserved. Its position is directly above the Anthony coal and 73 feet above the Allensville conglomerate.

In Eagle Township the lower Pottsville members are poorly represented, some through lack of deposition and others through replacement by the thick Massillon sandstone. The Guinea Fowl ore with good development was observed at only one place which is on the high knob north of High Hill School in southeastern Section 27. The

Ft. In Pottsville formation Ore, siliceous, sparingly fossilifer- GUN. here cw Ses en GN aes Shale and covered.............. Guinea Fowl 3 11 Ore, made up of small concretions about pea size, elevation 1,030; FOOb io at s.< oO oe eee tee J Covered vs cna, Jats sre a RRO ah eae Ce 9 0 Logan formation Shale and sandstone susie daesh ceed cao ae 12 0 Sandiétone, shaly ss. cekatedweaaiee dl aoe eee eee 15 0 Sandstone, shale, and covered sis. un teu aewon once 27 0 Shale.and 'covered'... ccciasoudy oh es ete e ek eee 32 0 Conglomerate, 2ilensetils... ove diane cee one ee 1 8

Pennsylvanian System 79

At this place the upper layer of ore is sparingly fossiliferous but the specimens are mostly fragmental. The Guinea Fowl ore is poorly developed in Jackson Township.

This ore, even in the days of the charcoal furnaces, was of little value in Vinton County. It has fair thickness and extent but 1s lacking in quality as it is everywhere siliceous. In this locality the bed was mined at only a few places and there only in a small way, and its use was confined to Richland Furnace. At present the member has no economic value worthy of consideration.

Quakertown Clay

The Quakertown clay lies below the Quakertown or No. 2 coal the position of which is normally 90 to 110 feet below the Lower Mercer limestone and 25 to 40 feet above the Sciotoville clay. In Vinton County the member is present at the surface in Richland, Harrison, Eagle, Jackson, and Swan townships and has been reached by shafting in Elk, Madison, and Clinton townships. The bed varies from 1 to 5 feet in thickness but averages only about 2 feet 6 inches. It is a plastic clay which is generally very siliceous and in many cases contaminated with small, ferruginous concretions. Locally ganister or clay-bonded sandstone is present below or interbedded in the clay. The thickness of this rock ranges from a few inches to several feet. Neither the clay nor the ganister is of high grade, hence they will be treated briefly.

In Swan Township the Quakertown clay is present at or not far above drainage along Brushy Fork from Creola to northern Section 27; along the stream west of Creola in sections 33, 29, and 30; and along Siverly Creek in sections 28, 21, 20, 19, 18, and 7. Where observed the clay is thin, from 1 to 4 feet, and very siliceous. On account of the dip of the rocks east and south, Quakertown members are present near the ridge summits in western Jackson Township and not far above the valley floors in the eastern part. In the few areas where the coal is present the associated clay is thin, siliceous, and impure. For like reasons the bed has no value in Eagle Township. It has fair development in eastern Harrison Township but shows little improvement in quality. The following record, taken in north central Section 26, is approximately representative:

The Quakertown clay, where present in Richland Township, has no qualities to recommend its use for ceramic purposes. The bed is everywhere thin and the material impure. In Elk Township: this coal and clay have been reached by shafting at Elk Fork in Section 9 and at Elko in Section 23. They appear just above drainage also at one place which is along Elk Fork in eastern Section 8. In Elk Fork Mine No. 1 of the Elk Fork Coal Co., the following record was

The thickness of the coal in this mine varies from 2 feet 2 inches to 3 feet 8 inches, that of the clay from 6 inches to 4 feet, and that of the ganister from 2 to 10 feet. The ganister is present in large quantities and was sampled for testing. (See below.) Clay and ganister of similar thickness and quality are also present in the old Elko mine.

In Vinton County the Quakertown is everywhere a siliceous, plastic clay of low refractory quality and in places it contains many concretions of ferruginous matter which further impair its value. Its working and drying properties are fair. The ganister on this horizon is hard, light colored, and fine grained, rather free from visible impurities. It consists principally of quartz sand which is bonded with a small quantity of clay. The plasticity is low.

Pennsylvanian System 81

The Quakertown coal was named in 1879 by I. C. White for exposures on Quakertown Run, near the Ohio-Pennsylvania line in Mahoning Township, Lawrence County, Pennsylvania, where it was worked in a small way for local use. At this place its position is just below the massive Upper Connoquenessing sandstone. The Quakertown member extends with many wants and usually in an impoverished condition across Ohio from Mahoning County on the north to Scioto County on the south. In this State the bed is best developed in Jackson County where it was brought into prominence in 1872 through the efforts of H. S. Bundy and where it has been mined steadily since that date. It has been worked also in a small way for many years in Vinton County. In these fields the member is generally known to the trade as

The position of the Quakertown coal is 60 to 80 feet above the Sharon coal, 25 to 40 feet above the Sciotoville clay, and 90 to 110 feet below the Lower Mercer limestone, which are the most prominent benches for reference. Further, it is commonly overlain and in many places replaced by the thick Massillon or Connoquenessing sandstone. Where the Sharon conglomerate has full thickness, the Quakertown member lies near the middle of the Pottsville formation. In many localities, however, the older Pottsville beds are absent, in which case this coal lies not far above the Waverly sandstone.

In Vinton County the Quakertown coal is due above drainage in eastern Eagle, Jackson, western Swan, eastern Harrison, western and central Richland, and central Elk townships and has been reached by shafting in northern and eastern Elk and southwestern Madison townships. Although the field is large, only in small areas in Jackson, Richland, Harrison, Elk, and Madison townships, has the bed sufficient thickness for mining. Future drilling may develop other valuable areas. The Quakertown coal varies in thickness from a soot streak to 4 feet; in the best parts of the field usually between 2 feet and 3 feet 6 inches. It is everywhere a bituminous coal with an occasional layer . of a few inches of a cannel interbedded in the stratum.

Harrison Township. - Quakertown coal has been mined in a small way for many years along the ridges in southeastern Harrison Township. The main field is confined to sections 23, 24, 25, and 26, where the average thickness of the bed is nearly 2 feet 3 inches. The quality of the fuel is excellent. In a mine on the farm of Eli Clark in west central Section 24, the following record was secured:

The bed varies from 1 foot 8 inches to 2 feet 6 inches in thickness. The coal is bright, clean, and low in pyrite. The bed is very steady in this locality and was formerly mined west of this in Section 23. In the southeastern corner of Section 24, a wagon mine is operated on the property of William Scott. Measurements obtained are given below:

Pennsylvanian System 83

The coal expands from 1 foot 8 inches to 2 feet 6 inches but averages 2 feet 2inches. The black shale parting is only locally present. Several small mines were formerly worked along the road in east central Section 25. The elevation of the bed is 880 feet and its position nearly 80 feet below the Lower Mercer coal and 60 feet above the Logan shales. North of this in the mine of C. C. Dozer, the following measurements were obtained and a sample cut for analysis. (See page 91.)

The member is very constant in thickness, averaging about 2 feet 2 inches. The fuel is of excellent quality, much resembling that in the Coalton field of Jackson County. In northeastern Section 26, the Quakertown member is only locally present, its absence being due both to lack of deposition and to replacement by sandstone. In the southeastern part of the area the bed is mined for the local trade on the farm of L. C. Boch. A section in the mine is given below:

Locally in this mine the coal thickens to 2 feet 6 inches. The bed has been worked at other places near by and also on the farm of Simon Collins in central Section 26, where a measurement in an old entry shows 2 feet 4 inches of good coal. The elevation of the member is 890 feet and its position 70 feet above the Logan formation.

Richland Township. - The Quakertown coal is thin or wanting in most of Richland Township and in only a few places has it been mined even in a small way. Formerly it was worked for shipment and local use in Section 6, south, but the area is now largely exhausted. The'member is reported to be about 2 feet 6 inches thick and the fuel of good quality. Its position is close to 880 feet above tide. In southwestern Section 30, the Lower Mercer coal is mined for local trade and the Quakertown bed has been opened along the outcrop. Measurements obtained on the Barbee property are given below:

In this locality the interval between the coals varies from 65 to 85 feet. East of this in sections 29 and 32, the Quakertown coal is thin or it is completely replaced by the Massillon sandstone, the position of which with reference to this member is shown on the following record secured along the road in northwestern Section 29:

In the vicinity of Richland Furnace the Quakertown coal is reported to be present locally and to vary from a few inches to 2 feet in thickness. Along Little Raccoon Creek in the eastern part of the area, the member is of no importance even for local needs.

ragle Township. - In Eagle Township, lower Pottsville rocks are present only along the ridges in sections 11, 12, 14, 25, 26, and 36. No deposits of workable coal are known within the area, the Quakertown bed being replaced by Massillon sandstone.

Jackson Township. - Quakertown coal is widely distributed in Jackson Township but 1s lacking in continuity and development. Where present the member is found only a few feet above the Logan shales. It lies near the summits of the main ridges in the western part of the area but descends close to or even below drainage level in the eastern part. This coal is best represented in sections 5, 8, 13, 17, 22, and 29, where it has helped to supply local needs.

Near the Chestnut Grove Church in Section 5, the Quakertown coal has been worked in a desultory way for many years. The thickness of the bed varies from 1 foot or less to 4 feet or more but averages about 3 feet. The following record, secured on the land of William Walton, is about representative of the stratigraphic features:

Pennsylvanian System 85

The maximum thickness reported in this locality is 4 feet 2 inches. Normally the bed has no regular parting or bone bands. Near by this member was examined by Andrews in 1870 and the measurements recorded are given below:' (See analysis, page 92.)

Along the ridges in southern Section 8 and in northern Section 17, the Quakertown member was formerly mined at a few places. In a prospect opening on land of Thomas Davis, which is located in north central Section 17, the following measurements were secured:

The bed is free from clay or bone partings. This coal was formerly worked also near the forks of the road in central Section 29 where it is reported to vary in thickness from a few inches to 2 feet 6 inches. The area appears to be small as the member is replaced by sandstone. The Quakertown coal appears again along the stream in central Section 13 where the thickness reported is about 2 feet.

Swan Township. - In Swan Township the Quakertown coal is above drainage along Siverly Creek in sections 7, 18, 19, 20, 21, and 28; along Brushy Fork in sections 27 and 34; and along the tributary west of Creola in sections 33, 29, and 30. The member, however, is poorly represented, being generally thin and in many cases completely wanting. It has been mined but little even for local use.

Just east of the depot at Creola, on land of Mrs. E. J. Herwick, the Quakertown coal lies just above drainage level and has been prospected by a small drift. The elevation of the bed is about 725 feet and its position nearly 110 feet below the Upper Mercer ore and flint. The member at this place is reported to consist of two coal benches, each about | foot thick, separated by a clay parting, also measuring nearly 1 foot. About one-fourth mile west of Creola and north of the road, the following composite section was secured:

The Quakertown member at this place is thus found to lie only 5 feet above the Vinton sandstone and 95 feet below the Lower Mercer ore. The coal in this area is reported to vary from a few inches to 2 feet in thickness and to be of good quality. Locally it is replaced by the massive overlying Massillon sandstone. Along the stream near the forks of the road in central Section 30, the Quakertown bed again appears just above drainage at an elevation of about 820 feet. The member where exposed measures from 5 inches to 1 foot 2 inches in thickness but near by it is reported to expand to 1 foot 6 inches. This variation in thickness is due to replacement of the upper part by sandstone. The fuel is of excellent quality, being hard, bright, and free from bone. Along Siverly Creek in Section 21, Quakertown coal is present from 5 to 20 feet above the Logan formation. The

Pennsylvanian System 87

Elk Township. - In Vinton County the Quakertown coal is of most importance in Elk Township where it has been mined in a small way for more than 60 years. The area is yet far from being exhausted but the coal is uncertain in thickness and in extent. The bed appears at the surface at only two places which are along Elk Fork in eastern Section 8 and along a tributary of this stream in northeastern Section 16. It is mined by shafting at Elk Fork and was formerly worked by this method at Elko or Vinton in Section 23. The bed, although subject to considerable variation in thickness, retains its high quality throughout the field.

The No. 1 mine of the Elk Fork Coal Company at Elk Fork was opened by C. K. Davis in 1900 and is still in operation. The bed expands from 1 foot 6 inches to 4 feet but averages about 3 feet 4 inches. It lies only a few feet above the Logan sandstone and is subject to rolls which cause the coal to have a maximum variation in level of nearly 20 feet and which therefore make mining somewhat difficult. The coal is thickest in the troughs and thinnest on the crests. The shaft is 90 feet deep. An average section of the mine is given below:

The coal bed is free from clay or shale partings and from pyrite concretions. The quality is much the same from top to bottom. For a thin bed the stratum mines easily and has a good roof and floor. A small quantity of Quakertown coal was mined by stripping with a steam shovel along the stream in the northwestern corner of Section 15, where the bed varies in thickness from 1 foot 10 inches to 2 feet 6 inches. Under cover it is reported to increase to as much as 3 feet. This member also appears at the level of Elk Fork in eastern Section 8 where it is mined by drifting on the property of John Bancroft. A: composite section at this place shows the position of the Quakertown member with respect to other well known strata higher in the geological column: