QUATERNARY GEOLOGIC MAP of the GLASGOW 1° × 2° QUADRANGLE, MONTANA Altitude Deposits of Wiota Gravel Or in Gravel of the Older Flaxville Formation
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U.S. Department of the Interior Prepared in cooperation with the OPEN-FILE REPORT 2012-1217 U.S. Geological Survey Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology 108°00' 106°30' 106°00' CORRELATION OF MAP UNITS 49°00' 107°30' 107° 49°00' % % % xsh tlx % % % % 9 jea agu 00 C LIST OF MAP UNITS % % k xlq oal Till of pre-Illinoian age is not known to overlie the gravel that contains the 9 % e thickness on higher plateau surfaces is 1–3 m, locally >8 m tlx(e) 00 B e C % % r agu r l ee erratic clasts. The glacial erratics apparently are products of middle u % C k The underlying sand and gravel on most of the Peerless Plateau is the Flaxville C tks f % f tks r % agu ICE-CONTACT Pleistocene glaciation, and the upper part of the Wiota gravel at those sites is tlx o C % formation (Collier and Thom, 1918; Whitaker, 1980; and Patton, 1987) and % % % W HOLOCENE AND LATE WISCONSIN w xsh es xly re xsh t F LACUSTRINE LANDSLIDE e tks DEPOSITS E % k reworked gravel. Most of the fluvial gravel that underlies map unit tks is al % o % Numerous k c 8 tks % the Wiota gravel (Jensen, 1951a, 1952; Jensen and Varnes, 1964; and Colton 0 tlx a o r 0 C % R tks k DEPOSITS DEPOSITS W s M small r t GLACIO- nonglacial in origin and is much older than any of the tills that overlie the e tks afj and others, 1989a, b). Those two stratigraphic units are distinguished solely P FLOOD-PLAIN AND CHANNEL ALLUVIUM h c 9 e % 00 k F o i % E BEDROCK t lakes F p FLUVIAL gravel e r xlq la GLACIAL ALLUVIAL EOLIAN COLLUVIAL o a on the basis of altitude, not on the basis of lithology or composition. w 8 r r 0 e jea k xsh 0 c Ri a n C v DEPOSITS DEPOSITS DEPOSITS DEPOSITS DEPOSITS h er agu RESIDUUM t c r caa wla FLOOD-PLAIN AND CHANNEL ALLUVIUM Consequently they are here designated as informal allostratigraphic units, not e ow e r 0 00 h % r 9 tks ggi 0 m xlq OUTWASH SAND AND GRAVEL—Sediment deposited in meltwater streams. 8 n xsh Pea Lake C formal lithostratigraphic units a Roa 900 tlx(e) % C nw n r o eek als Pale-yellow, brownish-yellow, reddish-brown, yellowish-brown, tlx(s) e % r R od Cr FLOOD-PLAIN AND CHANNEL ALLUVIUM, LAKE e e k C k e S e Numerous r % % k ou e Holocene olive-brown, grayish-brown, brown, olive, or mottled, calcareous or tlx(e) tlx(e) e th r xlq 9 800 e % % C 00 wla DEPOSITS, AND SHEETWASH ALLUVIUM small k 8 xsh caa tks So 00 tks al agu als eu LATE WISCONSIN noncalcareous, coarse sand, pebbly sand, and gravel. Poorly to well sorted; C 8 % uth lakes kg 0 % lca LAKE CLAY AND SILT r 0 lca lss poorly to well stratified. Typically is interbedded pebbly sand and pebble, e % Fo e % rk Roc tlx tlx LOAMY TILL—Sediment deposited chiefly by ice of a Laurentide continental ice k tlx(s) k caa % Cr LATE WISCONSIN tlx kg gg cobble, or boulder gravel. Lenses of silt and clay are present locally; local tlx(s) ee lss (e) (s) late sheet; Fort Assiniboine till in the Havre glacial lobe, Loring till in the tlx(s) % k W LAKE SILT AND SAND % xlq wla xcg xlq boulder beds. Clasts are subangular to very well rounded. Clast composition tlx(e) tlx tks % % es xsh eux jea cad caa cgx Whitewater glacial lobe, and Crazy Horse till in the Glasgow glacial lobe 900 t Pleistocene % generally is similar to that of till in the same area; locally, dominantly tlx xlq F (Fullerton and Colton, 1986; also see fig. 1). Typical till is pale-yellow, % caa xsh o eu EOLIAN SILT AND SAND tks 10 xly rk xsh redeposited quartzite, argillite, chert, and chert conglomerate derived from S 0 grayish-yellow, yellowish-brown, olive-brown, grayish-brown, brown, C tks 0 n P a r gravel of Tertiary to early Pleistocene age (see unit xsh). Boulders and large o o k ? brownish-olive, olive, yellowish-gray, brownish-gray, olive-gray, bluish-gray, w tks p e xly la Opheim r ggi cobbles are dominantly subangular to well rounded, reworked glacial erratics wla C % ILLINOIAN tks gray, or mottled, calcareous clay loam and loam; in some areas it is clay, silty tks C % wla Riv middle r er e r tks Pleistocene QUATERNARY Numerous small lakes e HOLOCENE, LATE PLEISTOCENE, AND MIDDLE PLEISTOCENE ? ? ? (quartzite; limestone and dolomite; granite, pegmatite, gneiss, schist, diorite, e 9 ? ? e 0 xly xsh clay, silty clay loam, silt loam, sandy clay, or sandy loam. Very gravelly in al tks k k tks 0 wla Pleistocene tks k some places; where till directly overlies shale bedrock, the matrix commonly and other igneous and metamorphic rocks). Clasts in some places are Whitewater tks PEERLESS ree PRE-ILLINOIAN tks C wla intensely stained by iron and manganese oxides. Mapped deposits are fills in Reservoir 900 Spring SHEETWASH ALLUVIUM is >90 percent shale fragments. In some places, till is interbedded with, 0 0 melt-water channels. Distinction between outwash sand and gravel (map unit tlx(s) 8 % xly Sp intercalated with, or contains lenses, pods, and stringers of clay, silt, sand, or R rin xsh agu eux ggi) and colluvium, sheetwash alluvium, and glaciofluvial-fill deposits (map jea tks g Creek EOLIAN SILT AND SAND ? early gravel. Generally nonstratified; nonsorted or very poorly sorted. Local weak tks % ggi unit cad) is arbitrary in some areas because exposures on channel floors are R k horizontal layering where the ice margin fluctuated in a lake. Commonly e jea gg e SLUMP-BLOCK LANDSLIDE DEPOSITS AND Pleistocene lacking. Surfaces are smooth or undulating. Includes some till, inset r PLATEAU massive; cohesive to friable. In some areas, gritty or mealy; crude fissility. C W tks flood-plain and channel alluvium, colluvium, and bedrock outcrops. wla EARTHFLOW AND MUDFLOW DEPOSITS Generally loosely compact or compact, but not hard. Sandy till is loose to Martin Lake h tks w xsh i k t e o M Pliocene Commonly overlain by sheetwash alluvium or eolian silt and sand. Thickness e tlx(e) e ll w r i i TERTIARY firm; silty till is firm. Clayey till is soft, slightly sticky to sticky, and slightly C tks d caa a W tks d COLLUVIUM, SHEETWASH ALLUVIUM, AND LANDSLIDE 1–4 m, locally >6 m t tks l e k e plastic to plastic when moist; hard when dry. Dry till in some places breaks r c o cgx xly F tlx(e) R xsh DEPOSITS r cad F into small angular flakes and plates that have sharp edges; blocky structure in e gg n o ? ? c r cad some other places. Parting typically is irregular or prismatic. Clay minerals h tks tks k COLLUVIUM, SHEETWASH ALLUVIUM, LAKE DEPOSITS, AND Whitewater m PRE-QUATERNARY a R n P xlq are dominantly montmorillonite. Widely spaced, weakly-developed joints o GLACIOFLUVIAL DEPOSITS R C C tks xlq r xsh BEDROCK-Includes areas of badland terrain c are common; in some places, joint surfaces are coated by powdery calcium r re caa % k u e e R e % e p e k r i xsh cgx GRAVELLY AND SANDY COLLUVIUM carbonate or gypsum, or both. Joint or parting surfaces are locally weakly k cad ggi C n East For e k R ow tks stained by iron or manganese oxides. Selenite (gypsum) crystals 1–3 mm tks Will C k wla r xcg tks tks e ggi 1 % e CLAYEY DISINTEGRATION RESIDUUM, COLLUVIUM, e long are present on joint surfaces in some places. Fragments of lignite % % e Sheetwash alluvium, for purposes of this map, is material that was transported and deposited r R ee k are debris washed from exposed shale surfaces or debris derived from C Cr k % (bedrock) are ubiquitous in till. Nearly pebble free to very pebbly; cobbles by unconfined running water, chiefly sheet flow and rill wash. tks SHEETWASH ALLUVIUM, AND TILL DESCRIPTION OF MAP UNITS cad % r r tks e tte collapse of gully walls. Deposits commonly form fans at mouths of gullies BOUNDARY tt Bi and boulders are rare to abundant. Boulders typically are more abundant in 2 Austin i k ggi 900 [Map unit thickness is typical range; in some areas the map units may be thicker B For or on foot slopes. Thickness 1–5 m Colluvium, for purposes of this map, is material that was transported and deposited by slow Lake k h till of late Wisconsin age than in older tills; also, average diameter of % % r ut or thinner than the given range] mass-movement processes, chiefly creep. Frenchman o k So % F ee r HOLOCENE AND PLEISTOCENE boulders is larger than that in older tills. Largest erratic boulders are >2 m in L % t C 2 1 i Reservoir s 3 t R e caa COLLUVIUM, SHEETWASH ALLUVIUM, AND LANDSLIDE DEPOSITS— Disintegration residuum, for purposes of this map, is material that was derived primarily tl tks tks tks HOLOCENE AND LATE WISCONSIN diameter. Clasts of older till and clasts or rafts of lignite (bedrock) as large as e PLATEAU W Complex map unit on valley sides and eroded uplands. Includes areas of lag from in-place mechanical disaggregation of clastic bedrock or other materials, with no tks xlq LOAMY DISINTEGRATION RESIDUUM, COLLUVIUM, AND al 2 m in diameter locally are included in the till.