Geology of the Northern Franklin Mountains, Texas and New Mexico
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Geology of the Northern Franklin Mountains, Texas and New Mexico By R. L. HARBOUR GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BULLETIN 1298 The geology of a complex fault-block range with emphasis on stratigraphy of Paleozoic rocks UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON: 1972 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR ROGER~ C. B. MORT~N, Secretory GEOLOGICAL SURVEY V. E. McKelvey, Director Library of Congress catalog-card No. i0-187909 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government PrintinQ Office WashinQton, D.C. 20402 Stock Number 2401-2052 CONTENTS Page Abstract ________________________________ ------____ ---------__ ----- 1 Introduction ___________ ---__________ ------____ ------_______ -----__ 2 Geography _______ ---_________________ -"- ______ ------ ___ ---:..--- 2 Regional setting _______________________ -----------____ ----- 2 PhysiographY--------------------------------------------- 4 Climate, flora, and fauna·---------------'-------------- .. -~-- 6 Population------------------------------------------------ 6 Previous geologic accounts ______ -------- ___ ;. __ -"----------------- 7 Description of the rocks ______ -----"-_________________ -..,------------- 9 Precambrianrocks_____________________________________________ 11 Castner Limestone ______________ ---____________ ------------ 11 ~undyBreccia-------------------------------------------- 13 Lanoria Quartzite _________________________ ----_____________ 14 Granite porphyry-----______ ---__ ------_______ ----_________ 16 Rhyolite ____ --- ___ -- __ -------__________ -----____ ---------" 16 Granne-------------------------------------------------- 17 Diabase dikes-----------"---------------------------------- - 18 Cambrian and Ordovician rocks-Bliss Sandstone__ _ _ __ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 19 Ordovician rocks ______________________________ -----__ --------- 21 El Paso Limestone_________________________________________ 21 Montoya Dolomite._-------------------------------------- 26 lJpharn Member--------------------------------------- 28 Aleman Member ___ -------------"---------------------- 31 Cutter Member·-------------------------------------- 31 Silurian rocks-Fusselman Dolomite ____ ----___ :..:..________________ 32 Devonian rocks ____________________________ -~ __: __ .;. _____ --~_____ 34 ~iddle Devonian rocks------------------------------------- 35 Perclia Shale __________________________________ -----_______ 37 Mississippian rocks ________________________________ --------____ 38 Las Cruces Limestone of Laudon and Bowsher (1949)__________ 38 Rancheria Formation of Laudon and Bowsher ( 1949) ___ .... __ _ _ _ _ 39 Helms Formation as used by Laudon and Bowsher (1949)______ 42 Pennsylvanianrocks------------------------------------------- 43 Magdalena Formation _______ ----------------_____ --------__ 43 La Tuna Member------------------------------------- 46 Berino Member--------------------------------------- 47 Bishop Cap Member----------------------------------- 47 1Jpper member _____________ ..; _____________ -----__ ------ 48 Permianrocks------------------------------------------------- 50 Hueco Limestone---------------------------------~--~----- 50 Cretaceousrocks ______________________________________ ~-------- 57 m IV CONTENTS Description of the rocks-Continued Page Tertiary and Quaternary rocks__________________________________ 58 Tertiary(?)-felsite silL____________________________________ 59 Tertiary and Quaternary-basin deposits_____________________ 60 Quaternary-gravel and caliche rimrock _______ .______________ 62 Holocene alluvium _________________________ -----___________ 63 Structure--------------------------------------------------------- 64 Precambrian deformation ______ --------_________________________ 64 Granite intrusion__________________________________________ 65 Folding and faulting_______________________________________ 65 Paleozoic and Mesozoic deformation_____________________________ 66 Cenozoic deformation ___ -------- ____ -- __________ --- _____ ----___ 67 Folds and thrust faults_____________________________________ 69 High-angle normal faults __ ------______________________ ----- 70 A vispa fault system______ __ __ _ __ __ __ _ __ _ __ __ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ __ __ _ _ _ 71 Fusselman Canyon fault____________________________________ 74 Low-angle normal faults------------------------------------ 74 Quaternary faults ______ -----__________________________ ----- 75 Mineral deposits _________________ --------- __ -- _______________ ------ 76 Tin---------------------------------------------------------- 76 Iron--------------------------------------------------------- 77 Gypsum------------------------------------------------------ 77 Magnesium--------------------------------------------------- 78 Oil and gas------------------------------------------------------- 78 Previous exploration _________________________ -------___________ 78 Potential source and reservoir rocks------------------------------ 81 Groundwater----------------------------------------------------- 83 Measured sections __________________________________ - _- _ _ __ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ 83 Fossils and localities_----- ________________________ -_---____________ 102 Castner Limestone (Precambrian) __________ ----_________________ 102 Bliss Sandstone (Upper Cambrian and Lower Ordovician)__________ 102 El Paso Limestone (Lower Ordovician)___________________________ 103 Montoya Dolomite (Upper Ordovician) ___ --- _______ -- __ --_______ 105 Middle Devonian rocks ________ ------______ ------ ____ ------_____ 109 Rancberia Formation of Laudon and Bowsher, 1949 (Mississippian)_ 110 Helms Formation as used by Laudon and Bowsher, 1949 (Upper Mississippian) _____________________________ -----_____________ 110 Magdalena Formation (Pennsylvanian) ________ -----______________ 111 Hueco Limestone (Permian) ____________________ -----___________ 112 References cited___________________________________________________ 119 IndeX------------------------------------------------------------ 125 ILLUSTRATIONS Page PLATE 1. Geologic map of the northern Franklin Mountains, Texas and ~ew Mexico _______________________________________ In pocket 2. Graphic sections of Precambrian and Paleozoic rocks, northern Franklin Mountains, Texas and ~ew Mexico __________ In pocket 3. Geologic sections of the northern Franklin Mountains, Texas and ~ew Mexico----------------------------------- In pocket CONTENTS V Page FIGURE 1. Index to area of geologic map_____________________________ 3 2. Longitudinal profile of the Franklin Mountains______________ 5 3. Graphic sections of lower Paleozoic rocks in the Franklin and Organ Mountains, Texas and New Mexico________________ 2.5 4. Diagrammatic section of the Franklin Mountains area at the beginning of El Paso (Ordovician) time__ _ _ _ _ _ __ __ __ _ __ _ _ 68 5. Map showing major Cenozoic structural features in the Frank- lin Mountains_________________________________________ 68 6. Map showing configuration of the Avispa fault surface_______ 72 TABLES Page TABLE 1. Layered rock units in the Franklin Mountains and vicinity___ 10 2. Magnesium content in the Castner Limestone_______________ 12 3. Thickness of members of the Lanoria Quartzite______________ 15 4. Distribution of conodonts collected in the El Paso and Montoya Formations in the northern Franklin Mountains___________ 29 5. Distribution of fossils collected in the Montoya Dolomite in the northern Franklin Mountains___________________________ 29 6. Classification of the Devonian rocks in the Franklin Mountains_ 35 7. Classification of the Mississippian rocks in the Franklin Moun- tains------------------------------------------------- 39 8. Fusulinid distribution in the Magdalena Formation of the Franklin Mountains__ _ _ _ __ __ _ _ _ __ __ _ __ _ _ _ __ __ __ _ _ __ __ _ 45 9. Lithologic correlation of the H ueco Limestone in the Franklin and Hueco Mountains_________________________________ 51 10. Fusulinid distribution in the Hueco Limestone, northern Franklin Mountains_ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ __ _ __ _ _ __ __ __ _ __ _ __ _ 53 11. Wells drilled for oil and gas in the mapped area_____________ 79 12. Significant oil and gas test wells in the Franklin Mountains region------------------------------------------------ 80 GEOLOGY OF THE NORTHERN FRANKLIN MOUNTAINS, TEXAS AND NEW MEXICO By R. L. IlAimoUR ABSTRACT The area described, about 160 square miles, lies in El Paso Ootmty, Tex., and Dona Ana County, N. Mex. It consists of the northern part of the Franklin Mountains and adjacent detrital terraces. Rocks present in the area range in age from Precambrian to Holocene. Pre cambrian rocks exposed include nearly 5,000 feet of metamorphosed sedimentary and volcanic rocks rthat have been intruded by granite. The metamorphosed rocks are divided, in ascending order, into the Castner Limestone, about 1,100 feet thick ; the Mundy Breccia, as much as 250 feet thick; and the Lanoria Quartzite, about 2,600 feet thick. A red rhyolite, about 1,400 feet thick, overlies the meta morphosed sequence and is also intruded by granite. The intruded granite is about 1,000 million years old. The granite is intruded by diabase that is provisionally assigned to the Precambrian. Paleozoic rocks form the major part of the Franklin Mountains and range in age from Late Cambrian to Permian. They include the Bliss Sandstone at the base of Late Cambrian and Early Ordovician age; it ranges in thickness from 0 to about 250 feet. The Bliss is overlain by the El Paso Limestone of Early Ordovician age, about 1,500 feet thick, and the Montoya Dolomite