Geologic units in Bledsoe county, Tennessee

Additional scientific data in this geographic area

Crab Orchard Mountains Group, including Rockcastle Conglomerate, Vandever Formation, Newton Sandstone, Whitwell Shale, and Sewanee Conglomerate (Pennsylvanian) at surface, covers 61 % of this area

Crab Orchard Mountains Group - Conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone, shale, and coal; from top of Rockcastle Conglomerate to base of Sewanee Conglomerate. Thickness 200 to 950 feet; including Rockcastle Conglomerate - Conglomeratic sandstone and sandstone, gray to brown, fine- to coarse-grained. Thin coal-bearing shale locally present near middle. Thickness 150 to 220 feet; Vandever Formation - Mostly shale and siltstone, dark-gray to light-brown; conglomerate or sandstone in middle to south. Lantana and Morgan Springs coals near base and top. Thickness as much as 450 feet, average about 300 feet; Newton Sandstone - Sandstone, gray to brown or pink, fine- to medium-grained, locally conglomeratic. Thickness as much as 200 feet; average about 90 feet; Whitwell Shale - Mostly dark-gray to light-brown shale, with minor siltstone; locally middle part is sandstone. Richland coal near base; Sewanee coal in upper part. Thickness as much as 220 feet, average about 75 feet; Sewanee Conglomerate - Conglomeratic sandstone and sandstone, gray to brown, fine- to coarse-grained. Thickness as much as 200 feet, average about 100 feet.

Wells Creek Formation and Knox Group (above Copper Ridge Dolomite) (Ordovician) at surface, covers 7 % of this area

Wells Creek Formation - Gray limestone and dolomite, with angular chert blocks and fragments; and minor shale, mottled red and green, calcareous. Thickness 0 to 50 feet. (Present only in Sequatchie Valley.); and Knox Group (above Copper Ridge Dolomite) - Gray, cherty dolomite and limestone, fine- to medium-grained. Maximum exposed thickness in Sequatchie Valley 600 feet. (Units in Onc are also mapped as OCk on the West-Central Sheet)

Rockcastle Conglomerate (Pennsylvanian) at surface, covers 6 % of this area

Conglomeratic sandstone and sandstone, gray to brown, fine- to coarse-grained. Thin coal-bearing shale locally present near middle. Thickness 150 to 220 feet.

Gizzard Group, including Signal Point Shale, Warren Point Sandstone, and Raccoon Mountain Formation (Pennsylvanian) at surface, covers 5 % of this area

Gizzard Group - Shale, siltstone, sandstone, and conglomerate; from base of Sewannee Conglomerate to top of Mississippian. Thickness 0 to 520 feet, including Signal Point Shale - Mostly dark-gray to light-brown shale, with minor siltstone. Wilder coal near top. Thickness 0 to 180 feet, average about 60 feet; Warren Point Sandstone - Sandstone and conglomeratic sandstone, gray to brown, fine- to medium-grained, locally interbedded with shale containing coal. Thickness 0 to 300 feet, thins from southeast to northwest, average thickness about 100 feet; Raccoon Mountain Formation - Shale, siltstone, and sandstone. Bon Air coal near top; White Oak and Sale Creek coals near base. Thickness 0 to 260 feet.

Ridley Limestone (Ordovician) at surface, covers 5 % of this area

Medium- to very thick-bedded, fine- to medium-grained, gray dolomitic limestone, with prominent greenish-gray calcareous shale and shaly limestone unit in middle. Thickness 200 to 275 feet.

Pennington Formation (Mississippian) at surface, covers 5 % of this area

Highly variegated clay shale, distinctive; contains siltstone and locally gray, fine-grained sandstone. Thickness 400 to 700 feet.

Pierce and Murfreesboro Limestones (Ordovician) at surface, covers 2 % of this area

Medium- to very thick-bedded, fine-grained, gray limestone; thin-bedded, nodular and shaly, greenish-gray limestone in places. Thickness 200 to 500 feet.

Fort Payne Formation (Mississippian) at surface, covers 2 % of this area

Bedded chert, calcareous and dolomitic, somewhat crinoidal; and minor shale. Thin green shale (Maury) at base. Average thickness about 200 feet.

Bangor Limestone and Hartselle Formation (Mississippian) at surface, covers 1 % of this area

Bangor Limestone - Dark brownish-gray limestone, thick-bedded. Thickness 70 to 400 feet., and Hartselle Formation - Thin-bedded, fine-grained sandstone interbedded with gray shale; with oolitic and coarse-grained limestone beds locally. Thickness 0 to 80 feet.

Sequatchie Formation, Leipers Formation, Inman Formation and Catheys Formation (Ordovician) at surface, covers 1 % of this area

Sequatchie Formation - Greenish-gray calcareous shale, mudstone, and argillaceous limestone; dolomitic, laminated, and sandy. Thickness 0 to 165 feet; Leipers Formation - Nodular, shaly limestone and fine- to coarse-grained limestone. Thickness 0 to 150 feet; Inman Formation - Thin-bedded to laminated, fine-grained, greenish-gray limestone interbedded with red and green calcareous shale beds. Thickness 0 to 50 feet. (Present only in Sequatchie Valley.); and Catheys Formation - Nodular, shaly, thin- to medium-bedded limestone and fine- to coarse-grained limestone. Thickness 125 to 400 feet.

Bigby-Cannon Limestone and Hermitage Formation (Ordovician) at surface, covers 1 % of this area

Bigby-Cannon Limestone - Dark- to light-gray, dense to medium-grained, medium- and even-bedded limestone. Thickness 80 to 150 feet; and Hermitage Formation - Gray, fine-grained, thin-bedded to laminated, sandy and argillaceous limestone; shale, weathers yellowish-brown; and nodular, shaly limestone. Thickness 50 to 100 feet.

Monteagle Limestone (Mississippian) at surface, covers 1 % of this area

Mainly fragmental and oolitic, light-gray limestone; blocky bryozoan chert weathers from base. Thickness 180 to 300 feet.

Carters Limestone (Ordovician) at surface, covers 1 % of this area

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 60 to 250 feet.

Lebanon Limestone (Ordovician) at surface, covers 1 % of this area

Thin-bedded limestone, gray to yellowish-brown, slightly dolomitic, with thin calcareous shale partings. Thickness about 100 feet.

St. Louis Limestone and Warsaw Limestone (Mississippian) at surface, covers 1.0 % of this area

St. Louis Limestone - Fine-grained, brownish-gray limestone, dolomitic and cherty. Thickness 80 to 160 feet.; and Warsaw Limestone - Mainly medium- to coarse-grained, gray limestone, crossbedded. Includes much calcareous sandstone and shale to the north. Thickness 100 to 130 feet.

Laurel Limestone, Osgood Formation, and Brassfield Formation (Silurian) at surface, covers 0.8 % of this area

Laurel Limestone - Dolomitic limestone, mottled yellowish-gray to yellowish-green, fine-grained. Thickness 0 to 10 feet. (Present only in Macon County); Osgood Formation - Grayish-green shale. Thickness 0 to 10 feet. (Present only in Macon County.); and Brassfield Formation - Olive-gray, fine-grained cherty limestone to the north, merging into olive-gray calcareous shale to the south. Thickness 60 to 130 feet. (Present only in Sequatchie Valley.)

Crab Orchard Mountains and Gizzard Groups (Pennsylvanian) at surface, covers < 0.1 % of this area

Sandstone, conglomerate, siltstone, shale, and thin coal beds. Thickness 1,200 to 1,400 feet.