Petrology of the Rockport Quarry Limestone (Middle Devonian Traverse Group) Alpena, Presque Isle and Montmorency Counties, Michigan
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Western Michigan University ScholarWorks at WMU Master's Theses Graduate College 12-1976 Petrology of the Rockport Quarry Limestone (Middle Devonian Traverse Group) Alpena, Presque Isle and Montmorency Counties, Michigan Charles Willard Cookman Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses Part of the Geology Commons, Mineral Physics Commons, and the Sedimentology Commons Recommended Citation Cookman, Charles Willard, "Petrology of the Rockport Quarry Limestone (Middle Devonian Traverse Group) Alpena, Presque Isle and Montmorency Counties, Michigan" (1976). Master's Theses. 614. https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses/614 This Masters Thesis-Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate College at ScholarWorks at WMU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at WMU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. PETROLOGY OF THE ROCKPORT QUARRY LIMESTONE (MIDDLE DEVONIAN TRAVERSE GROUP) ALPENA, PRESQUE ISLE AND MONTMORENCY COUNTIES, MICHIGAN by Charles Willard Cookman A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate College in partial fulfillment of the Degree of the Master of Science Western Michigan University Kalamazoo, Michigan December 19 76 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ABSTRACT The basal unit of the dominantly carbonate Traverse Group, the Bell Shale, is gradationally overlain by the Rock- port Quarry Limestone which has a thickness of approximately 14 m. The Rockport Quarry Limestone is composed of a dark unrestricted marine subtidal organic-mud packstone facies, comprised of an algal-mat-bearing coral packstone subfacies and a shallower water crinoid-bryozoan grainstone subfacies; a shoal-forming stromatoporoid biolithite facies; and a la- goonal micrite facies comprised of a subtidal dense subfacies containing gastropods, ostracods, and calcispheres, and an intertidal to supratidal fenestral subfacies. The local fa cies tract reconstructed for the Rockport Quarry Limestone is interpreted to be analogous to the subtidal facies relation ships present today in and around Rodriguez Key and within the intertidal to supratidal environments at Andros Island and Shark Bay, Australia. At Rockport Quarry and Grand Lake, basal Rockport Quarry strata are comprised of extensive bio- lithites (3 x 1000 m in cross section) composed of laminate to tabulate stromatoporoid sheets interlaminated with subordi nate organic-mud packstone. Higher in the section at Rockport Quarry, the stromatoporoid biolithite facies is capped locally by a subtidal back-shoal biolithite-micrite transition facies containing what is thought to be the first recorded occurrence of calcareous algae in the Middle Devonian of Michigan. ii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. iii Insoluble residues of the Bell Shale and organic-mud packstones from the Rockport Quarry Limestone are mineralogi- cally similar, but the residues from the Rockport Quarry Lime stone are darker due to disseminated pyrite and hydrocarbons. The dominant hydrocarbon grain type, 4 micron brown "micro spheres," are inferred to be the fossil unicell remnants of ancient subtidal algal mats. Diagenetic phenomenon observed within the Rockport Quarry Limestone indicate early marine cementation, neomorphism, so lution and compaction, followed by later local void formation and dolomitization. Extensive dolomite at Ocqueoc Falls pro bably reflects dolomitization along a local fracture system. Twenty-two taxa were encountered that were previously unrecorded in the literature for Rockport Quarry including: calcareous algae, cephalopod conchs, and trilobite fragments. Three families of stromatoporoids were differentiated. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. INFORMATION TO USERS This material was produced from a microfilm copy of the original document. While the most advanced technological means to photograph and reproduce this document have been used, the quality is heavily dependent upon the quality of the original submitted. The following explanation of techniques is provided to help you understand markings or patterns which may appear on this reproduction. 1. The sign or "target" for pages apparently lacking from the document photographed is "Missing Page(s)". 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The majority of users indicate that the textual content is of greatest value, however, a somewhat higher quality reproduction could be made from "photographs" if essential to the understanding of the dissertation. Silver prints of "photographs" may be ordered at additional charge by writing the Order Department, giving the catalog number, title, author and specific pages you wish reproduced. 5. PLEASE NOTE: Soma pages may have indistinct print. Filmed as received. University Microfilms International 300 North Zeeb Road Ann Arbor. Michigan 48106 USA St John's Road. Tyler s Green High Wycombe. Bucks, England HP10 8HR Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. MASTERS THESIS M-9 30 7 COOKMAN, Charles Willard PETROLOGY OF THE ROCKPORT QUARRY LIMESTONE (MIDDLE DEVONIAN TRAVERSE GROUP) ALPENA, PRESQUE ISLE AND MONTMORENCY COUNTIES, MICHIGAN. Western Michigan University, M.S., 1976 Geology Xerox University Microfilms, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48106 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS It is a pleasure to acknowledge the advice and encour agement of my research advisor, Dr. W. David Kuenzi. Dr. Kuenzi introduced me to the problems of the Traverse Group of the northern lower peninsula of Michigan and suggested the study of the Rockport Quarry Limestone. I also thank Drs. Wm B. Harrison and W. T. Straw for providing comments and criti cism of the manuscript. Thanks are also expressed to Mr. Wm. Mantek of Consumers Power Co., Jackson, Michigan, and Mr. Irvin Kuehner of the Geological Survey Division of the Michi gan Department of Natural Resources who furnished well log data from the study area. The study was made possible by support from the Graduate Student Research Fund at Western Michigan University. Thanks are expressed to Dr. Lloyd J. Schmaltz and the Geology De partment at Western Michigan University for providing the in tellectual training and equipment necessary to carry out the study. Thanks are also expressed to Frank Allen and Lynn Toohey of the Western Michigan University Libraries who pro vided vital assistance in acquiring the research literature required. I am grateful to Mari Harrington for assistance in typin of the manuscript, and Judy Robinson for processing of photo graphs . iv Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION .............................................. 1 Previous Investigations .............................. 4 Methodology ............................................ 6 Terminology ......................................... 7 Petrography ......................................... 8 X-Ray Analysis and Other T e s t s ..................... 11 FACIES ........................................................17 General Statement ..................................... 17 Micrite Facies ................... - ...................... 19 Outcrop Description ................................ 19 Petrography............................................ 21 Dense Micrite Subfacies ....................... 23 Fenestral Subfacies ........................... 25 Relationships Between Subfacies of the Micrite F a c i e s .............................................. 28 Interpretation of the Micrite Facies ........... 29 Organic-Mcd Packstone Facies ......................... 31 Outcrop Description ................................ 31 Composition of the Dark Fraction ................... 35 Petrography......................................... 3 7 Coral Packstone Subfacies ..................... 40 Crinoid-Bryozoan Grainstone Subfacies .... 43 Interpretation of the PackstoneFacies .......... 47 Stromatoporoid Biolithite Facies ..................... 52 v Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. VI Outcrop Description ................................ 52 Petrography............................................ 54 Interpretation of the Stromatoporoid Biolithite F a c i e s ................................................