Stratigraphy of the Cretaceous Hornbrook Formation, Southern Oregon and Northern California
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Stratigraphy of the Cretaceous Hornbrook Formation, Southern Oregon and Northern California U.S. GEOLOaieAk SURVEY PROFESSI0 JJAl FAFER Stratigraphy of the Cretaceous Hornbrook Formation, Southern Oregon and Northern California By TOR H. NILSEN U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 1521 A stratigraphic division of the Hornbrook Formation into five nonmarine and marine members UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON : 1993 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR BRUCE BABBITT, Secretary U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY DALLAS L. PECK, Director Any use of trade, product, or firm names in this publication is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government Illustrations edited by Dale Russell and prepared by Michelle Coveau Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Nilsen, Tor Helge. Stratigraphy of the Cretaceous Hornbrook Formation, southern Oregon and northern California / by Tor H. Nilsen. p. cm. (U.S. Geological Survey professional paper ; 1521) Includes bibliographical references. Supt. of Docs, no.: I 19.16:1521 1. Geology, Stratigraphic Cretaceous. 2. Geology California. 3. Geology Oregon. 4. Hornbrook Formation (Calif, and Or.) I. Title. II. Series. QE685.N55 1993 551.7'7'097952 dc20 , 93-3585 CIP For sale by Book and Open-File Report Sales, U.S. Geological Survey, Federal Center, Box 25286, Denver, CO 80225 CONTENTS Page Page Abstract________________________________ __ 1 Stratigraphic subdivisions of the Hornbrook Formation Introduction 1 Continued Previous work 5 Rocky Gulch Sandstone Member Continued Hornbrook Formation 10 Depositional environment 50 Stratigraphic subdivisions of the Hornbrook Formation 14 Age and correlation 51 Klamath River Conglomerate Member 14 Blue Gulch Mudstone Member 51 Definition 14 Definition 51 Areal extent 16 Areal extent 54 Type section 16 Type section 55 Lithology 19 Lithology 62 Stratigraphic relations 21 Stratigraphic relations 64 Thickness - ----- - 22 Thickness 64 Depositional environment 22 Depositional environment 65 Age and correlation 23 Age and correlation 65 Osburger Gulch Sandstone Member 23 Rancheria Gulch Sandstone Beds 67 Definition 23 Definition 6 7 Areal extent 24 Areal extent 68 Type section 26 Type section 68 Lithology 28 Lithology 69 Stratigraphic relations 30 Stratigraphic relations 70 Thickness - - ~ ~~~~~ ------------- 31 Thickness 71 Depositional environment 32 Depositional environment 71 Age and correlation 33 Age and correlation 71 Ditch Creek Siltstone Member 34 Hilt Bed 72 Definition 34 Definition 72 Areal extent 35 Areal extent 72 Type section 36 Type section 72 Lithology 38 Lithology 73 Stratigraphic relations 42 Stratigraphic relations 74 Thickness - - 42 Thickness 74 Depositional environment 43 Depositional environment 75 Age and correlation 43 Age and correlation 75 Rocky Gulch Sandstone Member 44 Summary and conclusions 75 Definition 44 References cited 77 Areal extent 45 Appendix I. Megafossils collected from the Hornbrook Type section 45 Formation 84 Lithology 47 Appendix II. Foraminifers collected from the Hornbrook Stratigraphic relations 49 Thickness ___________________________ 50 ILLUSTRATIONS Page PLATE 1. Geologic map of the Hornbrook Formation, Oregon and California In pocket FIGURE 1. Map showing location of outcrops of the Hornbrook Formation, major physiographic provinces, and adjacent outcrop 2. Index map of outcrop area of the Hornbrook Formation 3. Cross section of Cotton wood Creek valley area 4. Photograph of view northwest from Paradise Craggy toward Cottonwood Creek valley, showing northeast-dipping strata of the Hornbrook Formation and related geologic features 5. Simplified geologic map of the Hornbrook Formation, showing distribution of major Stratigraphic units in IV CONTENTS 6. Charts showing development of stratigraphic nomenclature and correlation of units within the Hornbrook Formation and showing subdivisions of Late Cretaceous time proposed by various workers in the Hornbrook Formation 8 7. Composite measured section of the Hornbrook Formation 11 8. Geologic map of Cottonwood Creek valley area, showing location of type sections of stratigraphic subunits of the Hornbrook Fonnfltion ----- ---- ------- .------- ------ -------- - ------------------ --------« «-« -«"«« -«---»«« «»« -" -" « T2 9. Photographs of type section of the Klamath River Conglomerate Member of the Hornbrook Formation 15 10. Type section of the Klamath River Conglomerate Member of the Hornbrook Formation and explanation of symbols on stratigraphic sections 20 11. Photographs of type section of the Osburger Gulch Sandstone Member of the Hornbrook Formation 25 12. Type section of the Osburger Gulch Sandstone Member of the Hornbrook Formation 29 13. Photographs of type section of the Ditch Creek Siltstone Member of the Hornbrook Formation 35 14. Type section of the Ditch Creek Siltstone Member of the Hornbrook Formation 38 15. Photographs of type section of the Rocky Gulch Sandstone Member of the Hornbrook Formation 44 16. Type section of the Rocky Gulch Sandstone Member of the Hornbrook Formation 48 17. Photographs of type section of the Blue Gulch Mudstone Member of the Hornbrook Formation 53 18. Type section of the Blue Gulch Mudstone Member of the Hornbrook Formation 60 19. Photographs of type section of the Rancheria Gulch Sandstone Beds of the Blue Gulch Mudstone Member of the HomliToolc Formfltion --------------- ------«-« --«-« --"---«- ---«-- ------« --»«--»-«-«--«»«« -«"-« --«« « »-"- -----« -««" 67 20. Type section of the Rancheria Gulch Sandstone Beds of the Blue Gulch Mudstone Member of the Hornbrook Formation _ . .... _....._......_....._......___._._.____............................___...........___................. 70 21. Photographs of the Hilt Bed of the Blue Gulch Mudstone Member of the Hornbrook Formation 73 22. Type section and reference section of the Hilt Bed of the Blue Gulch Mudstone Member of the Hornbrook Formation - 74 TABLES Page TABLE 1. Composition of conglomerate clasts in the type section of the Klamath River Conglomerate Member 22 2. Composition of conglomerate clasts in the type section of the Osburger Gulch Sandstone Member along the southbound lane of Interstate Highway 5, 0.5 km west of the type section 30 3. Geochemistry of coal sample collected from the Ditch Creek Siltstone Member near the Hagedorn Ranch in the Shflstfl. Vfl.ll.Gv fli*Gfl ------------------------------- --- - - --- - -««««--»- «»««««-«- -----««-- *-"- « --"-----"« -««' - «-*«- 40 4. Maceral analysis of coal sample collected from the Ditch Creek Siltstone Member near the Hagedorn Ranch in the Shasta Valley area 41 STRATIGRAPHY OF THE CRETACEOUS HORNBROOK FORMATION, SOUTHERN OREGON AND NORTHERN CALIFORNIA By TOR H. NILSEN ABSTRACT stone Beds (85.8 m thick), consisting of shallow-marine sand stone, with locally abundant megafossils, that forms a lens in the lower part of the Blue Gulch Mudstone Member in the Hornbrook The Cretaceous Hornbrook Formation crops out continuously area; and (2) the Hilt Bed (as thick as 4.71 m), a compound tur for a distance of about 80 km from the Medford Valley in south bidite sandstone bed about 410 m above the base of the Blue western Oregon to the Shasta Valley in north-central California; Gulch Mudstone that forms a mappable horizon from the Shasta it also crops out as an outlier in the Grave Creek area of Oregon, Valley area to the Ashland area. The members of the Hornbrook about 39 km northwest of the northernmost outcrops in the Formation appear to form an essentially conformable sequence, Medford Valley. In its main outcrop belt, which is the area of although previous workers have suggested the presence of an concern in this paper, the Hornbrook Formation forms a north unconformity between the Ditch Creek Siltstone Member and the west-striking and northeast-dipping homoclinal sequence of Rocky Gulch Sandstone Member. nonmarine and marine sedimentary rocks. The Hornbrook For mation rests unconformably on Paleozoic, Triassic, and Jurassic igneous, metasedimentary, and metavolcanic rocks of the core of the Klamath Mountains; these rocks form the southwestern mar INTRODUCTION gin of the outcrop belt. To the northeast, the Hornbrook Forma tion is unconformably overlain by Tertiary volcanic and sedimentary rocks of the Western Cascade Series. Although no Lower and Upper Cretaceous sedimentary strata continuous section of the Hornbrook Formation has been mea that crop out in Siskiyou County, California, and sured, a composite section made up of measured type sections of Jackson County, Oregon, were named the Hornbrook its various members indicates a total thickness of 1,235.7 meters Formation by Peck and others (1956). These rocks for the formation in its type area located adjacent to Hornbrook, California. The Hornbrook Formation contains abundant had previously been assigned by various authors to megafossils and microfossils within its marine units that are in the Chico Formation (Diller, 1906) or "Chico Group" dicative of an age of late Albian(?) to early Maestrichtian for the (Gabb, 1869), which crops out on the northeastern rocks of its main outcrop belt. margin of the Sacramento Valley in California. Peck The Hornbrook Formation is subdivided into five members, and others (1956) measured a composite type section each of which, except for the lowest member, is present over most of its outcrop length. The members are, in ascending order, (1) of the Hornbrook Formation that is 2,673 ft (815 m) the Klamath River Conglomerate Member (36.5 m thick), consist thick in the