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Mineral Resources > Online Spatial Data > Geology > by state > Tennessee Geology

Geologic units in Jefferson county, Tennessee

[Additional scientific data in this geographic area]

Lenoir Limestone (Ordovician) at surface, covers 3 % of this area

Lenoir Limestone - Nodular, argillaceous, gray limestone; in places basal sedimentary breccia, conglomerate, quartz sand; Mosheim Limestone Member (dense, light- to medium-gray limestone) near base. Thickness 25 to 500 feet.

Lithology: limestone; conglomerate; sand

Kingsport Formation (Ordovician) at surface, covers 1 % of this area

Kingsport Formation - Gray, fine-grained, sparingly cherty dolomite with basal dense, gray limestone sequence. Thickness about 250 feet.

Lithology: dolostone (dolomite); limestone

Pumpkin Valley Shale (Cambrian) at surface, covers 0.2 % of this area

Pumpkin Valley Shale - Dull-brown to maroon shale with numerous interbeds of thin, blocky, and sandy siltstone. Thickness 100 to 600 feet.

Lithology: shale; siltstone

Copper Ridge Dolomite (Cambrian) at surface, covers 15 % of this area

Copper Ridge Dolomite - Coarse, dark-gray, knotty dolomite, asphaltic in places, with much gray, medium-grained, well- bedded dolomite; abundant chert; cryptozoans typical. Thickness about 1,000 feet.

Lithology: dolostone (dolomite); chert

Unnamed (upper part of Knox Group), including Newala Formation, Mascot Dolomite, Kingsport Formation, Longview Dolomite, and Chepultepec Dolomite (Ordovician) at surface, covers 15 % of this area

(Onc) Unnamed (upper part of the Knox Group), including the (On) Newala Formation; (Oma) Mascot Dolomite - Light-gray, fine-grained, well-bedded cherty dolomite; mottled (red and green) dolomite characteristic; interbeds of bluish-gray limestone in upper part; chert-matrix quartz sandstone at base. Erosional unconformity at top. Thickness 350 to 800 feet; (Ok) Kingsport Formation - Gray, fine-grained, sparingly cherty dolomite with basal dense, gray limestone sequence. Thickness about 250 feet. and (Olc) Unnamed (middle part of the Knox Group), including (Olv) Longview Dolomite - Siliceous, gray, fine-grained, medium-bedded dolomite; interbeds of gray limestone in upper part. Thickness about 300 feet; (Oc) Chepultepec Dolomite - Light-gray, fine-grained, well-bedded dolomite, moderately cherty; fine-grained limestone locally in upper part; quartz sandstone beds at base. Average thickness about 800 feet.

Lithology: dolostone (dolomite); limestone; sandstone

Ottosee Shale (Ordovician) at surface, covers 3 % of this area

Ottosee Shale - Bluish-gray calcareous shale, weathers yellow; with reef lenses of coarsely crystalline reddish fossiliferous limestone ("marble"). Thickness about 1,000 feet.

Lithology: shale; limestone

Chepultepec Dolomite (Ordovician) at surface, covers 1 % of this area

Chepultepec Dolomite - Light-gray, fine-grained, well-bedded dolomite, moderately cherty; fine-grained limestone locally in upper part; quartz sandstone beds at base. Average thickness about 800 feet.

Lithology: dolostone (dolomite); limestone; sandstone

Newala Formation, including Mascot Dolomite and Kingsport Formation (Ordovician) at surface, covers 5 % of this area

(On) Newala Formation, including (Oma) Mascot Dolomite - Light-gray, fine-grained, well-bedded cherty dolomite; mottled (red and green) dolomite characteristic; interbeds of bluish-gray limestone in upper part; chert-matrix quartz sandstone at base. Erosional unconformity at top. Thickness 350 to 800 feet; and (Ok) Kingsport Formation - Gray, fine-grained, sparingly cherty dolomite with basal dense, gray limestone sequence. Thickness about 250 feet.

Lithology: dolostone (dolomite); limestone; sandstone

Chilhowee Group; Cochran Conglomerate (Cambrian) at surface, covers 0.1 % of this area

Chilhowee Gourp; Cochran Conglomerate - Quartz-pebble conglomerate, gray pebbly arkose, siltstone and shale; irregular bedding, scour features, crossbedding common; maroon micaceous arkose and shale near middle and base. Thickness about 1,200 feet.

Lithology: conglomerate; arkose; sandstone; siltstone; shale

Conasauga Group, including Maynardville Limestone, Nolichucky Shale, the Maryville, Rogersville, and Rutledge Formations, Pumpkin Valley Shale, Rome Formation, and Shady Dolomite (Cambrian) at surface, covers < 0.1 % of this area

Conasauga Group - Mostly shale northwest of a line connecting Etowah and Bearden (Knoxville); to the east it consists of the six formations at right [Cmn, Maynardville Limestone. Ccl including Cn, Nolichucky Shale, Cmr Maryville, Rogersville, and Rutledge Formations, and Pumpkin Valley Shale; Cr, Rome Formation, and Cs, Shady Dolomite. Thickness about 2,000 feet.

Lithology: shale; limestone; dolostone (dolomite); sandstone; siltstone

Chilhowee Group; Murray Shale (Cambrian) at surface, covers < 0.1 % of this area

Chilhowee Group; Murray Shale - Shale, silty, sandy, dull-green to brown, micaceous. Thickness about 500 feet.

Lithology: shale

Nichols Shale (Cambrian) at surface, covers < 0.1 % of this area

Chilhowee Group; Nichols Shale - Olive-gray to green, silty and sandy, micaceous shale and siltstone; local lenses of fine-grained feldspathic quartzite. Thickness about 700 feet.

Lithology: shale; siltstone; quartzite

Maryville, Rogersville, and Rutledge Formations (Cambrian) at surface, covers 3 % of this area

Maryville, Rogersville, and Rutledge Formations - Maryville and Rutledge are gray limestone, in part oolitic, with gray dolomite locally. Rogersville is green clay shale. Thickness 400 to 1,000 feet.

Lithology: limestone; shale; dolostone (dolomite)

Unnamed (middle part of Knox Group), including Longview Dolomite and Chepultepec Dolomite (Ordovician) at surface, covers 3 % of this area

(Olc) Unnamed (middle part of Knox Group) including (Olv) Longview Dolomite - Siliceous, gray, fine-grained, medium-bedded dolomite; interbeds of gray limestone in upper part. Thickness about 300 feet.; and (Oc) Chepultepec Dolomite - Light-gray, fine-grained, well-bedded dolomite, moderately cherty; fine-grained limestone locally in upper part; quartz sandstone beds at base. Average thickness about 800 feet.

Lithology: dolostone (dolomite); limestone; sandstone

Mascot Dolomite (Ordovician) at surface, covers 3 % of this area

Mascot Dolomite - Light-gray, fine-grained, well-bedded cherty dolomite; mottled (red and green) dolomite characteristic; interbeds of bluish-gray limestone in upper part; chert-matrix quartz sandstone at base. Erosional unconformity at top. Thickness 350 to 800 feet.

Lithology: dolostone (dolomite); limestone; sandstone

Nolichucky Shale (Cambrian) at surface, covers 3 % of this area

Nolichucky Shale - Pastel-colored (pink, greenish, olive), flaky clay shale; gray, commonly oolitic, shaly limestone lenses; locally stromatolitic limestone layers; thin, blocky siltstone near middle. Thickness 500 feet in the east to 900 feet in the west.

Lithology: shale; limestone; siltstone

Chilhowee Group; Nebo Sandstone (Cambrian) at surface, covers < 0.1 % of this area

Chilhowee Group; Nebo Sandstone - Medium-bedded, fine-grained, white vitreous quartzite, in part feldspathic. Thickness 250 feet.

Lithology: quartzite

Maryville Limestone (Cambrian) at surface, covers 1 % of this area

Maryville Limestone - Gray, ribboned (silt and dolomite), fine-grained, evenly bedded limestone; intraformational conglomerate and oolitic layers common; clay shale and light-gray dolomite locally. Thickness 300 to 800 feet.

Lithology: limestone; conglomerate; dolostone (dololmite)

Sevier Shale (Ordovician) at surface, covers 32 % of this area

Sevier Shale - Calcareous, bluish-gray shale, weathers yellowish-brown; with thin, gray limestone layers; sandstone, siltstone, and locally conglomerate to the east. Thickness 2,000 to 7,000 feet.

Lithology: shale; limestone; sandstone; siltstone; conglomerate

Rogersville Shale (Cambrian) at surface, covers 0.7 % of this area

Rogersville Shale - Light-green, fissile clay shale; in places limestone (Craig Member) in upper part. Commonly 25 to 80 feet thick; maximum thickness 250 feet.

Lithology: shale; limestone

Holston Formation (Ordovician) at surface, covers 1 % of this area

Holston Formation - Pink, gray, and red coarsely crystalline limestone (Holston Marble); in many areas upper part is sandy, crossbedded ferruginous limestone and brown to greenish calcareous shale. Thickness 200 to 600 feet.

Lithology: limestone; shale

Nolichucky Shale, and Maryville, Rogersville, and Rutledge Formations, and Pumpkin Valley Shale (Cambrian) at surface, covers 3 % of this area

(Cn) Nolichucky Shale - Pastel-colored (pink, greenish, olive), flaky clay shale; gray, commonly oolitic, shaly limestone lenses; locally stromatolitic limestone layers; thin, blocky siltstone near middle. Thickness 500 feet in the east to 900 feet in the west.; (Cmr) Maryville, Rogersville, and Rutledge Formations - Maryvile and Rutledge are gray limestone, in part oolitic, with gray dolomite locally. Rogersville is green clay shale. Thickness 400 to 1,000 feet. Pumpkin Valley Shale - Dull-brown to maroon shale with numerous interbeds of thin, blocky, sandy siltstone. Thickness 100 to 600 feet.

Lithology: shale; limestone; dolostone (dolomite); siltstone

Rome Formation (Cambrian) at surface, covers 0.2 % of this area

Rome Formation - Variegated (red, green, yellow) shale and siltstone with beds of gray, fine-grained sandstone. Maximum exposed thickness 1,500 feet.

Lithology: shale; siltstone; sandstone

Longview Dolomite (Ordovician) at surface, covers 2 % of this area

Longview Dolomite - Siliceous, gray, fine-grained, medium-bedded dolomite; interbeds of gray limestone in upper part. Thickness about 300 feet.

Lithology: dolostone (dolomite); limestone

Chilhowee Group; Hesse Sandstone (Cambrian) at surface, covers < 0.1 % of this area

Chilhowee Group; Hesse Sandstone - White, vitreous quartzite, medium- to coarse-grained, occurs in massive ledges; Helenmode Member at top is gray to greenish sandstone and shale. Thickness about 600 feet.

Lithology: quartzite; sandstone; shale

Maynardville Limestone (Cambrian) at surface, covers 2 % of this area

Maynardville Limestone - Thick-bedded, bluish-gray, ribboned (silt and dolomite), nodular limestone; light-gray, fine- grained, laminated to thin-bedded, noncherty dolomite in upper part. Thickness 150 to 400 feet.

Lithology: limestone; dolostone (dolomite)

Rutledge Limestone (Cambrian) at surface, covers 0.4 % of this area

Rutledge Limestone - Medium- to dark-gray, ribboned (silt and dolomite), medium-grained, well-bedded limestone; locally dark-gray, coarse-grained, medium-bedded dolomite in upper part. Thickness 100 to 500 feet.

Lithology: limestone; dolostone (dolomite)

Maynardville Limestone, Nolichucky Shale, and Honaker Dolomite (Cambrian) at surface, covers 0.6 % of this area

Maynardville Limestone - Thick-bedded, bluish-gray, ribboned (silt and dolomite) nodular limestone; light-gray, fine-grained, laminated to thinly bedded, noncherty dolomite in upper part. Thickness 150 to 400 feet; Nolichucky Shale - Pastel-colored (pink, greenish, olive), flaky clay shale; gray, commonly oolitic, shaly limestone lenses; locally stromatolitic limestone layers; thin, blocky siltstone near middle. Thickness 100 feet in the east to 900 feet in the west; Honaker Dolomite - Dark-gray, medium-bedded dolomite with minor dark limestone beds; locally cherty; cryptozoans abundant in places. Thickness about 1,500 feet.

Lithology: dolostone (dolomite); shale; limestone; siltstone

Knox Group, including Newala Formation, Mascot Dolomite, Kingsport Formation, Longview Dolomite, Chepultepec Dolomite, and Copper Ridge Dolomite (Ordovician to Cambrian) at surface, covers 1 % of this area

Knox Group - Siliceous dolomite and magnesian limestone sequence. Thickness 2,500 to 3,000 feet.

Lithology: dolostone (dolomite); limestone