million year time gap. time year million
Orogeny.
the unconformity. Thus, this unconformity represents about a 65 a about represents unconformity this Thus, unconformity. the
episode called the Variscan the called episode
the Permian and deposition resumed in the Lower Triassic above Triassic Lower the in resumed deposition and Permian the
in a mountain building mountain a in
down to the Lower Westphalian / Upper Namurian level during level Namurian Upper / Westphalian Lower the to down
were then uplifted and folded and uplifted then were
during the Variscan Orogeny. The sequence was then eroded then was sequence The Orogeny. Variscan the during
continent Pangaea. The rocks The Pangaea. continent
tilted gently westwards at the end of the Carboniferous Period Carboniferous the of end the at westwards gently tilted
south to form the super- the form to south
In the Churnet Valley the Carboniferous rocks were uplifted and uplifted were rocks Carboniferous the Valley Churnet the In
continent of Gondwana to the to Gondwana of continent
Laurussia collided with the with collided Laurussia
younger ones. younger
Late in the Carboniferous the in Late
folded and then exposed to erosion before the deposition of the of deposition the before erosion to exposed then and folded
19
Goniatite concretion Goniatite
have been uplifted, tilted and/or tilted uplifted, been have
Printed by MC Print Services Tel: 01782 370080 01782 Tel: Services Print MC by Printed Cover photograph: Star Wood Star photograph: Cover ‘Coal Measures’. ‘Coal
rocks below the unconformity the below rocks
containing more coal and ironstone belongs to the Westphalian the to belongs ironstone and coal more containing
Keep dogs under close control and consider other people. other consider and control close under dogs Keep
rocks
unconformity is where the older the where is unconformity
as you find them; protect plants and animals and take your litter home. litter your take and animals and plants protect them; find you as
sequence; the upper muddier part muddier upper the sequence;
Carboniferous
Goniatites 18
one below. An angular An below. one
older surfaces. Be safe, plan ahead and follow any signs; leave gates and property and gates leave signs; any follow and ahead plan safe, Be surfaces.
of the Namurian ‘Millstone Grit’ ‘Millstone Namurian the of
1cm
Remember to follow the country code and please do not hammer the rock the hammer not do please and code country the follow to Remember sequence above from an older an from above sequence
coarser sand units forming part forming units sand coarser
surface separates a younger a separates surface
This trail is dedicated to the memory of Ken Rout, founding member of SRIGS. of member founding Rout, Ken of memory the to dedicated is trail This sequence contains thicker and thicker contains sequence
surface
gap in the geological record. The record. geological the in gap
into coal. The lower part of the of part lower The coal. into
Triassic rocks Triassic unconformity www.staffs-wildlife.org.uk - Trust Wildlife Staffordshire
surface which represents a time a represents which surface
Later this was buried and turned and buried was this Later younger www.esci.keele.ac.uk/nsgga - Association Geologists' Group Staffordshire North
An unconformity is a geological a is unconformity An
www.staffs-rigs.org.uk - RIGS Staffordshire new land formed peat in swamps. in peat formed land new
UNCONFORMITY geomorphological sites in Staffordshire. For more information contact: information more For Staffordshire. in sites geomorphological
emerged. Plants colonising this colonising Plants emerged.
responsible for the conservation of regionally important geological and geological important regionally of conservation the for responsible
delta. Eventually the delta surface delta the Eventually delta.
A member of UKRIGS, the Staffordshire RIGS Group is a voluntary organisation voluntary a is Group RIGS Staffordshire the UKRIGS, of member A ancient rivers and winds. and rivers ancient
and then sandier material in the in material sandier then and
• Staffordshire Moorlands District Council District Moorlands Staffordshire • direction can be used to determine the direction of the flow of flow the of direction the determine to used be can direction
fell and rivers deposited muds deposited rivers and fell • Staffordshire Moorlands Community & Volunteer Services Volunteer & Community Moorlands Staffordshire •
determine the ‘way up’ of sedimentary rocks, and the slope the and rocks, sedimentary of up’ ‘way the determine
• Landmark Publications (LP) Publications Landmark •
• National Trust National • Froghall Ironstone Froghall Erosion of the tops of these sloping layers can be used to used be can layers sloping these of tops the of Erosion
ice caps to grow again, sea-level again, grow to caps ice • WBB Minerals Ltd Minerals WBB • • Forestry Commission Forestry •
downcurrent side of dunes and ripples in either air or water. or air either in ripples and dunes of side downcurrent
Global cooling then caused the caused then cooling Global • North Staffordshire Railway Staffordshire North • • British Geological Survey Geological British • 1cm
deposition of sediment on the on sediment of deposition
marine fossils such as goniatites. as such fossils marine The Staffordshire RIGS Group gratefully acknowledge the support of: support the acknowledge gratefully Group RIGS Staffordshire The
foresets surfaces. It is formed by the by formed is It surfaces.
the delta depositing muds containing muds depositing delta the
up
beds Rosie Duncan. Rosie by Design stated. otherwise unless Waller
normally flat, bedding plane bedding flat, normally
way
sandstone
ice cap. Sea-level then rose, flooding rose, then Sea-level cap. ice
Richard and Stimpson Ian Reynolds, John Floyd, Peter Cossey, sloping layers between the main, the between layers sloping
Patrick by photos and Text . 2007 Scheme Grant Levy Aggregates rocks. It consists of a series of series a of consists It rocks.
melted the southern polar southern the melted
the Staffordshire RIGS Group with financial support from the Staffordshire the from support financial with Group RIGS Staffordshire the surface)
0 100 km 100 0 sediments and sedimentary and sediments
Rising Variscan mountains Variscan Rising
(erosion
change. Global warming Global change.
on behalf of behalf on Stimpson Ian and Waller Richard by managed project A
bedding plane bedding within layered (bedded) layered within
current
cycles due to global climate global to due cycles
ripple/dune
Cross-bedding is a feature found feature a is Cross-bedding
Uttoxeter
sands were laid down in down laid were sands
CROSS BEDDING CROSS
km 5 0
Laurussia. Muds, silts and silts Muds, Laurussia. B5053
a continent called continent a with the opening of the Atlantic Ocean. Atlantic the of opening the with Wales - London - Brabant High Brabant - London - Wales
Uttoxeter
upon Trent upon on-Trent
on the southern margin of margin southern the on fractured and faulted by late Triassic earth movements associated movements earth Triassic late by faulted and fractured
from south from
from west from
Burton Stoke-
A522
Early local rivers local Early
in a low-lying muddy delta muddy low-lying a in meandering and the sands finer grained. The rocks were later were rocks The grained. finer sands the and meandering
Later rivers Later
NSB Alton
A521 B5053
equator, close to sea-level, to close equator, As the highlands were gradually lowered, the rivers became more became rivers the lowered, gradually were highlands the As 0 5 3 3 B
a Great Industrial Past Industrial Great a
Cheadle
on-Trent were deposited near to the to near deposited were south-west England and Brittany. and England south-west
northeast
Ashbourne
34 Earl’s Rock Earl’s
rivers from rivers
Stoke-
Carboniferous sediments Carboniferous eroding Variscan mountains in mountains Variscan eroding Oakamoor True Grits and Ghosts of Ghosts and Grits True
Major
A521
A522
These rivers flowed from the fast- the from flowed rivers These
A520
Kingsley
Uplands
Whiston
next to the map overleaf. map the to next unconformity diagram below). diagram unconformity
Trent
Southern
Cotton
Froghall
on- years old). See the column the See old). years Carboniferous rocks (see rocks Carboniferous
Derby
A52 Stoke-
Ashbourne Triassic (250 - 245 million 245 - (250 Triassic unconformably over the eroded the over unconformably Foxt Geotrail
Basin
years old) and the Lower the and old) years sands and pebbles and sands
Ipstones Staffordshire
- North - NSB
about 318 - 313 million 313 - 318 about B5053 deposited rivers braided Large A523
Winkhill Upper Carboniferous (here Carboniferous Upper northern hot desert latitudes. desert hot northern Churnet Valley Churnet Leek
Carboniferous geological time periods, the periods, time geological Triassic, the region was at was region the Triassic,
Upper
GEOTRAIL B Valley belong to two to belong Valley
5 the During uplift. that to due here
Macclesfield
0
5 Britain in the in Britain
4
The rocks of the Churnet the of rocks The Rocks of Permian age are missing are age Permian of Rocks
Leek, Buxton & Buxton Leek, The
N Bakewell
Hartington,
LOCATION MAP LOCATION GEOLOGY GEOLOGY
GEOMORPHOLOGY INDUSTRIAL HERITAGE INDUSTRIAL HERITAGE INDUSTRIAL HERITAGE
The Churnet Valley is renowned for its steep-sided and dramatic From the 16th to The last use of Lead character and this has led to the area being nicknamed “Little 19th centuries iron ore was for For a short time in the mid 1700s, lead mined at Ribden, near Switzerland”. the Churnet the production of Farley, was smelted at the smelting mill in Ousal Dale 33. Today, its sheer Valley was the ochre pigment size is at odds scene of intense for paint and Limestone with the placid industrial activity, dyes at Froghall In 1775 the Caldon Low misfit river with furnaces, 48. quarries were leased to meandering forges, mills and Caldon Lime Co. A across its mines. The tramway from the picturesque floor. underlying quarries to the Caldon However, during bedrock of the Canal 1 at Froghall Churnet Valley Railway 48 48 Colour works, Froghall Bridge the last Ice Age valley contained Wharf was part of the 18,000 years ago, ores of iron, copper and lead, as well as coal, limestone and Canal Act. Several 30 Churnet Valley from Toot Hill part of the British sandstone. The River Churnet provided water power and the Copper tramway lines were built ice sheet penetrated the upper part of the Churnet Valley. Torrents woods provided charcoal. Tramways were constructed to carry Copper wire manufacture and brass 3 Ochre staining (1778) 7, (1785) 10, of meltwater flowing under the ice and issuing from the glacier limestone from the Caldon Low quarries and local coal and (copper & zinc) production replaced iron (1804) 11 and (1847) 9. margin caused huge amounts of erosion and sediment transport, ironstone to the Caldon (1778) 1 and Uttoxeter (1809) 1, 24-27, smelting. The In many places lime creating the valley’s present form. Changes in the valley’s width 44 canals. The Churnet Valley Railway (1849) 24-27, 44, 47, 48 Cheadle Brass & Copper Co., kilns can be seen as at and depth reflect variations in the resistance of the underlying transported industrial sand and copper products from Oakamoor was set up in 1734. Extensive Froghall Wharf 1 and rocks to erosion. The onto the rail network. mining of copper ore at Ecton Oakamoor 24. These 1 Lime kilns at Froghall Wharf gorge-like sections Iron in the Manifold Valley required were used to burn pass through resistant A medieval iron bloomery building a new copper smelting limestone to make lime for use in agriculture and construction. sandstones and more existed at East Wall 41 in works at Whiston (1768) 11. The limestone was and continues to be used as a flux in iron open areas are floored the 12th-14th centuries. Blocks of copper slag can be smelting and, with mudstone, in the manufacture of cement. by softer mudstones. Ironstone from the local 12 Copper slag, Whiston The ice sheet also Coal Measures was mixed Coal caused a complete with charcoal and seen in local buildings and walls 11, Coal had long been used as a reversal of the river’s limestone, covered with turf 12. By 1828 most copper wire fuel, though not in early smelters direction. Previously, and heated to separate the production was handled at the new as only charcoal generated the the Churnet flowed iron. On cooling, the slag mills at Oakamoor 24. A row of necessary heat. Mine shafts can Present day meltwater valley in Greenland LP north from Froghall to Oakamoor Forge was raked from the iron terraced cottages built for brass be seen north of Froghall 2, 5 and the north of Cheddleton before turning west and joining the Trent mass (or pig). An iron forge (hammer mill), using water power, workers can be seen at Greendale 39. this trail follows several former drainage system at Endon. When ice blocked this route it forced is recorded at Oakamoor 24 in 1573. One of the first iron furnaces By 1834 all copper wire interests had tramways. The Woodhead the river to flow southward and erode its present course. equipped with bellows geared from a water wheel was built in been bought by Thomas Bolton & Son Tramway from mines near 1593 at Old Furnace 38. The Froghall Ironstone seam was mined Ltd. of Birmingham and produced at Cheadle to the Uttoxeter Canal Incision and the creation of the valley’s steep sides led to numerous around Froghall where spoil is still visible 2. their Froghall factory 48. 12 Copper slag block work is crossed below Gibridding Wood landslides, particularly in areas underlain by weak mudstones. 42. Down-cutting of the main valley also “rejuvenated” the tributary valleys as they attempted to erode down to the new lower level Sandstone and Conglomerates of the Churnet. Their erosion was not caused by glacial meltwater, Sand has been extracted from the but by the action of Rough Rock at Moneystone 14 Disused tramway seasonal snowmelt for glassmaking and the Freehay streams. These Conglomerate quarried for aggregates at Highshutt 40 and flowed across the Croxden. The sandstones are frozen ground in also used widely in the front of the ice sheet building industry. The and left a series of Hollington Sandstone for dry valleys, which example is used in many currently have no Staffordshire buildings surface streams. including Pugin’s St. Giles 29 Rakes Dale dry valley 2 Mine Spoil 48 Froghall copper works circa 1912 Quarried Rough Rock, Moneystone Church at Cheadle (1846).