Very light to light-olive-gray, thin to thick-bedded fine to coarse-grained bioclastic (abundant pelmatozoans) limestone containing abundant nodules, lenses and beds of light to dark-grey chert. Upper part of formation locally consists of light-bluish-gray laminated siltstone containing vugs lined or filled with quartz and scattered throughout the formation are interbeds of medium to greenish-gray shale, shaly limestone and siltstone. Commonly present below the Fort Payne is a light-olive-gray claystone or shale (Maury Formation) which is mapped with the Fort Payne. The apparent thickness of the Fort Payne in this province varies due to differnetial dissolution of carbonate in the formation.
Light-gray limestone, partly oolitic near top; fine to very coarse-grained bioclastic crinoidal limestone common; light-gray chert nodules and concretions are scattered throughout and are abundant locally. The apparent thickness of the formation in this province varies due to differential dissolution of the carbonate in the unit.
Sequatchie Formation -- grayish-red and yellowish-gray calcareous shale containing interbedded fossiliferous limestone. Elkmont Formation -- medium to dark-gray phosphatic limestone with interbeds of light to medium-gray and black shale. Leipers Limestone -- medium to dark-gray thin to medium-bedded fossiliferous limestone containing interbeds of argillaceous limestone. Inman Formation -- interbedded greenish-gray or moderate to dusky-red shale and light-gray peloidal limestone. Nashville Group undifferentiated -- medium to dark-gray argillaceous and fossiliferous limestone overlain by yellowish-gray laminated silty limestone. Stones River Group -- medium to dark-gray thick to thin-bedded limestone, argillaceous in part, locally very fossiliferous.
Fort Payne Formation - Bedded chert; calcareous and dolomitic silicastone; minor limestone and shale; scattered lenses of crinoidal limestone. Thin green shale (Maury) at base. Average thickness about 250 feet (475 in Wells Creek area); and Chattanooga Shale - Black carbonaceous shale, fissile. Thickness 0 to 70 feet; average about 20 feet. (Mapped as MDc on East-Central and East sheets)
Ordovician [units] including Richmond Group (which includes Mannie Shale - Olive-gray shale. Thickness 0 to 20 feet; Fernvale Limestone - Massive, coarsely crystalline, gray limestone with varicolored grains. Thickness 0 to 50 feet; Sequatchie Formation - Olive-gray and greenish-gray shale, mudstone, and argillaceous limestone; dolomitic, laminated, and sandy. Thickness 0 to 100 feet; and Arnheim Formation Nodular, shaly, gray limestone. Thickness 0 to 20 feet; the Maysville Group (which includes Leipers Formation - Nodular, shaly limestone; fine- to coarse-grained limestone; and phosphatic calcarenite locally. Thickness 0 to 150 feet); the Eden Group (which includes the Inman Formation - Thin-bedded to laminated, fine-grained, gray limestone with shale partings. Thickness 0 to 50 feet); and the Nashville Group (which includes Catheys Formation - Nodular, shaly limestone; fine- to coarse-grained limestone; phosphatic calcarenite; and light-gray cryptograined limestone. Thickness 50 to 175 feet.)
Nashville Group - Bigby-Cannon Limestone - Brownish-gray phosphatic calcarenite and light-gray to brownish-gray, cryptograined to medium- grained, even-bedded limestone. Thickness 50 to 125 feet; and Hermitage Formation - Thin-bedded to laminated, sandy and argillaceous limestone with shale; nodular shaly limestone; coquina; and phosphatic calcarenite. Thickness 50 to 100 feet.
Sand, silt, clay, and gravel. As much as 60 feet thick in flood plains of Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers; in smaller streams generally less than 20 feet thick.
Silurian Formations - Characteristically light olive-gray to greenish-gray, with variable reddish-brown color in some areas. Individual formations are generally uniform in thickness, except where truncated by pre- Chattanooga erosion. Most formations are slightly thicker (than indicated) in Wells Creek Basin. Includes Decatur Limestone- Thick-bedded, medium- to coarse-grained limestone, gray with reddish-brown grains. Thickness 0 to 70 feet; Brownsport Group (which includes Lobelville Formation - Shale with thin beds of limestone. Thickness 0 to 30 feet; Bob Limestone - Thick-bedded, medium-grained limestone, locally oolitic. Thickness 0 to 25 feet; and Beech River Formation - Shale with thin beds of limestone. Thickness 0 to 60 feet); Wayne Group (which includes Dixon Formation - Green and reddish-brown argillaceous limestone, shale, and mudstone. Thickness 0 to 40 feet; Lego Limestone - Even-bedded, olive-gray limestone with scattered reddish-brown grains. Thickness 0 to 30 feet; Waldron Shale - Greenish-gray fossiliferous shale. Thickness 0 to 5 feet; Laurel Limestone - Even-bedded, olive-gray limestone with scattered reddish-brown grains. Thickness 0 to 30 feet; Osgood Formation - Greenish- and reddish-gray shale and argillaceous limestone. Thickness 0 to 15 feet); and Brassfield Limestone - Thin-bedded cherty limestone, locally glauconitic. Thickness 0 to 50 feet; generally about 20 feet.
Fine-grained, yellowish-brown limestone; thin-bedded in upper part; thicker bedded and very slightly cherty with scattered mottlings of magnesian limestone in lower part. Contains thin bentonite beds. Thickness 50 to 100 feet.