Geologic units in Whiteside county, Illinois

Silurian System undivided (Silurian (Llandovery to Pridoli)) at surface, covers 88 % of this area

Silurian System undivided, includes Sexton Creek Limestone, St. Clair Limestone, and Moccasin Springs Formation in southern Illinois; includes Wilhelmi Formation, Elwood Dolomite, Kankakee Dolomite, Joliet Dolomite, Sugar Run Dolomite, and Racine Dolomite in northeastern Illinois; includes Mosalem, Tete des Morts, Blanding, Sweeney, Marcus, and Racine Dolomites in northwestern Illinois.

Maquoketa Formation or Group (Upper Ordovician (Stage 6 to Hirnatian)) at surface, covers 7 % of this area

Maquoketa Formation or Group, includes Cape Limestone, Cape La Croix Shale, Thebes Sandstone, Orchard Creek Shale, Girardeau Limestone, and Leemon Formation in southern Illinois; includes Scales Shale, Fort Atkinson Limestone, Brainard Shale, and Neda Formation in northern Illinois; includes Noix Oolite in western Illinois.

Galena Group (Trenton Limestone) (Upper Ordovician (Stage 5 to Stage 6)) at surface, covers 5 % of this area

Galena Group (Trenton Limestone), includes Decorah, Dunleith, Wise Lake and Dubuque Formations in northern Illinois.

Tradewater Formation (Pennsylvanian (Bashkirian to Moscovian)) at surface, covers 0.1 % of this area

Tradewater Formation

Maquoketa formation (Upper Ordovician; Richmondian (upper Katian)) at surface, covers 0.1 % of this area

Includes Elgin, Clermont, Fort Atkinson, Brainard, and Neda members. Overlain by Silurian strata in east-central Iowa, incised paleovalleys beneath Mosalem Fm.; truncated beneath Devonian strata in northern-most counties. Primary lithologies: shale, green-gray, variably dolomitic, mostly unfossiliferous; dolomite, argillaceous, part shaly, variably fossiliferous (part with common trilobites); dolomite, part argillaceous, part cherty to very cherty (northern Iowa). Secondary lithologies: shale, brown to brown-gray, organic, part graptolitic, part finely laminated (lower strata); dolomitic limestone to limestone, argillaceous, part cherty to very cherty, variably fossiliferous, part crinoidal (northern Iowa); interbedded dolomite and shale, part nodular, part fossiliferous. Minor: phosphorite, granular to massive (basal unit); dolomite, phosphatic to very phosphatic, argillaceous (Elgin Mbr.); ooidal ironstone and red shale (Neda Mbr.); pyrite, finely disseminated to nodular, pyrite cements. Maximum thicknesses: generally 200-275 ft (60-85 m) beneath Silurian, locally 100-200 ft (30-60 m) beneath Mosalem Fm.; 75-180 ft (23-55 m) where capped by Devonian strata in northern Iowa.

Hopkinton, Blanding, Tete Des Morts, Mosalem formations (Lower Silurian, ?Rhuddanian, Aeronian-upper Llandovery,?uppermost Ordovician, upper Hirnantian) at surface, covers < 0.1 % of this area

Mosalem Formation infills erosional paleovalleys incised into Maquoketa Shale; absent outside of paleovalleys. Lower Hopkinton Formation locally contains carbonate mound facies in Bremer County. Blanding Formation oversteps Tete des Morts-Mosalem edge in southern outcrop area. Primary Lithologies: dolomite, fossil-moldic to vuggy, fine to coarse crystalline; dolomite, dense to porous, cherty to very cherty, nodular to bedded chert (especially Blanding Fm). Secondary Lithologies: dolomite, dense, sparsely fossiliferous; dolomite, argillaceous, part laminated (Mosalem Fm). Minor: chalcedony, silicified fossils. Maximum thicknesses total interval: 160-330 ft (49-100 m), thickest in Dubuque, Jackson, Jones counties where Mosalem present; southern outcrop total thickness 65-130 ft (20-40 m). Formation thicknesses: Hopkinton, 65-160 ft (20-49 m); Blanding, 25-65 ft (8-20 m); Tete des Morts, 0-35 ft (11 m); Mosalem, 0-100 ft (30 m).

Galena Group and Platteville Formation (Upper Ordovician, Turinian-basal Richmondian (upper Sandbian-upper Katian)) at surface, covers < 0.1 % of this area

Galena Group includes Decorah, Dunleith, Wise Lake, Dubuque formations; Platteville Formation includes Pecatonica, McGregor members; Glenwood Shale forms thin basal shale unit. Primary lithologies: dolomite, part porous to vuggy, fossiliferous, part cherty; limestone and dolomitic limestone, fossiliferous, part cherty (note: Galena Group entirely limestone to north, entirely dolomite to south, interstratified limestone-dolomite in intervening areas). Secondary lithologies: shale, green-gray, calcareous, with thin to nodular limestone, part fossiliferous (Decorah Sh); limestone, wavy-bedded to nodular, part fossiliferous (Decorah-Platteville); dolomite and limestone, slightly argillaceous. Minor: shale partings and thin beds, green-gray to brown-gray, part fossiliferous (Dubuque Fm); shale partings and thin beds, light to dark brown, part organic-rich (Decorah-Platteville); dolomite, sandy to very sandy (Pecatonica Mbr); shale, green-gray, noncalcareous, unfossiliferous, part sandy (Glenwood Sh); thin sandstone to siltstone (Glenwood Sh); dark phosphatic grains (primarily Glenwood, Pecatonica, Decorah); phosphate-pyrite-iron oxide crusts (on some hardground surfaces); pyrite nodules; thin K-bentonite beds (Galena Gp); ironstone ooids (Decorah Sh). Maximum thicknesses total interval: 330 ft (100 m); Galena Group, 250-280 ft (76-85 m); Platteville Formation, 25-55 ft (8-17 m); Glenwood Shale, 3-10 ft (1-3 m).

Scotch Grove Formation (Lower Silurian, upper Llandovery-lower Wenlock) at surface, covers < 0.1 % of this area

Formation includes Welton, Buck Creek Quarry, Waubeek, Palisades-Kepler, Johns Creek Quarry members; Palisades-Kepler and Johns Creek Quarry members contain carbonate mound facies. Erosionally beveled and truncated beneath Dw. Primarily Lithologies: dolomite, porous, fossil-moldic to vuggy, part very crinoidal (includes Welton Mbr); dolomite, cherty to very cherty, dense (Buck Creek Quarry Mbr). Secondary Lithologies: dolomite, sparsely fossil-moldic, dense, part vuggy (includes Waubeek Mbr); dolomite, coarsely crystalline, part very crinoidal (within Johns Creek Quarry, Palisades-Kepler mbrs); dolomite mudstone, dense. Minor: dolomite, slightly argillaceous; quartz druse, chalcedony, silicified fossils. Maximum thicknesses: 94-240 ft (29-73 m); may reach thicknesses to 300 ft (90 m); beveled and truncated beneath Dw.