Geologic Quadrangle Map No. 16
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BUREAU OF ECONOMIC GEOLOGY THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AUSTIN 12, TEXAS John T. Lonsdale, Director Geologic Quadrangle Map No. 16 Harper Quadrangle, Gillespie County, Texas By Virgil E. Barnes July, 1954 GeologyHarperQuadrangle,GillespieCounty,oftheTexas VirgilE.Barnes General Setting mated to be about 90 feet thick in the Pedernales River, locality 17-23A, have Inmapping the Comanche Peak lime- in the sequence weather slowly and pebbles,cobbles, and finer materials in- lished data). A well in the Spring Hensell sand, and in the other three, part quadrangle and been identified by Ralph Imlay as stone, have only thin soil covering are cluding some Much of the ma- Creek quadrangle to east the water Harper quadrangle is in the Edwards southeastern of the Dr. points at which its boundaries a or caliche. situated the is from near the base of the consists of alternating beds of lime- follows: cross roads were placed on aerial pho- bare and nearly void of vegetation. The terial is limestone, chert, and dolomite of the center of the maximum entered Edwards limestone. Two of the springs Plateau province south of the Llano re- stone, dolomite, clay, and sand or, more tographs. In addition points of contact softer beds develop a more adequate from the Edwards limestone, and some diorite. Itis unlikely that the maximum issue from near the base, and the other gion. The plateau surface within the Tylostoma cf. regina (Cragin) correctly stated, beds having various were mapped at many places between soil and are thickly vegetated mostly is limestone from the Comanche Peak. is caused entirely by diorite, and since is located about 100 feet above the quadrangle is dissected by the Peder- Nerinea texana Roemer? proportions of these materials. Only 4 sp. portions photographs by a scrub oak identified by Cuyler All of the deposits are located in the a poorly denned superimposed maxi- base of the Edwards nales River and its tributaries in the Lunatia? roads. On of the limestone. The feet of Glen Rose beds are described Aporrhais? sp. having stereoscopic coverage the bound- (1931) as "Quercus fusiformis Sargent southeastern portion of the quadrangle. mum exists to the west of the well, it wells range from 77 to 283 feet in southern part and by Threadgill and Lunatia? pedernalis (Roemer) in the section given below. aries were traced under the stereo- (mountain scrub oak)." Alluvium— Deposits are is likely that a large diorite mass has depth, and the water level in 1936 EdwardsCreeks in the northern part. Protocardia texana (Conrad) Alluvium. of alluvium The Glen Rose limestone, consisting scope, stereoscopic coverage intruded the Packsaddle schist. stood between 19 and 232 The geology of the Harper quad- Protocardia multistriata Shumard and where The Edwards surface below the gyp- mostly situated along Pedernales River feet below of beds having varying resistance to sp. is lacking, the boundaries can still be the surface. The total solids range from rangle is shown on a planimetric map, Corbis sum horizon is mostly rocky with hard and its tributaries. A small amount in erosion, sp. parts per elsewhere in Gillespie County Protocardia very closely approximated by following The the northern part of the quadrangle is 214 to 354 million. and the only topographic map avail- Cyprimeria texana (Roemer) limestone beds and chert. chert Mineral Resources produces a terraced topography which the vegetational banding. It is possible, along and zone near able is the reconnaissance 30-minute Arctica spp. has a fairly general distribution, but Edwards Creek Maverick A the base of the Edwards shows clearly on aerial photographs. In however, the quadrangle in Kerrville quadrangle. Elevations rang- Brachydontes pedernalis (Roemer) that within some outcrop bands are free of it. Some Spring Branch. Narrow belts and The known mineral resources of the limestone is the most readily utilizable the Harper quadrangle, however, the areas covered by colluvial material, the quadrangle are limited to ing between 1,891 and 2,226 feet were Exogyra texana Roemer of the chert in the Edwards limestone patches of alluvium follow many of the nonmetallic aquifer within the quadrangle, and the slopes are more gentle, colluvial ma- Gryphaea wardiHill and Vaughan upper boundary of the Comanche Peak is of a quality suitable for the manu- lesser drainages in the area but are in- substances and water. Outside of the Hensell sand beneath should also con- determined during traversing for con- Gryphaea terials are thicker, and little of the sp. limestone has been mapped too high soil, which is mostly for range trol, only highest point was Holectypus planatus Roemer facture of artifacts, and because it was significant and have not been mapped. used tain some water. No information is but the vegetational banding so common to cf. reached. The lowest point is somewhere and that the outcrop belt of Comanche used so extensively by the aborigines, is Some of the alluvium is cultivatedand land, the most important nonmetallic available on the rocks beneath the Cre- the GlenRose is present.The Glen Rose limestone.— In Peak shown is too wide. that cleared resources are construction materials. taceous within the quadrangle, but in the southeastern part of the quad- Comanche Peak limestone the mostly referred to as flint. The Edwards some is not supports a it is limestone is not very fossiliferouswithin below, unlikely much Cretaceous rangle and is estimated to be at an section described the Comanche The Comanche Peak limestone is fos- limestone within the quadrangle is so growth of pecan trees. that of the the Harper quadrangle, and no fossil elevation of about 1,800 feet, giving Peak limestone is 31 feet thick, which siliferous especially in its lower por- gently sloping and the rocks so poorly Construction Materials willbe underlain by water-bearingrocks collections were made from it. and indications exposed impossible reasonably close the surface. The about 425 feet of relief for the quad- is slightly thicker than in the adjacent tion, of fossils are pres- that it is practically Subsurface Geology — to rangle. FredericksburgGroup quadrangles to the north and east. The ent elsewhere in it. Two collections to measure a complete section. The Building stone.stone Some limestone beds sandstones of the Cambrian probably quadrangle, About two-thirds of the quadrangle Included within the Fredericksburg Comanche Peak limestone grades down- were made directly from the Comanche basal portion of the Edwardslimestone No rocks of pre-Cretaceous age crop in the Edwards limestone are of about are present beneath the but Peak limestone, and, explainedabove, along Pedernales River, however, within the quadrangle, andonly one if their depth can be judged from wells is directly drained by Pedernales River group of theHarperquadrangle is about ward into the Walnut clay. Upward it as is ex- out suitable thickness for ledge-stone to be quadrangle, and its branches. The northern third 307 feet of Edwards limestone, 30 feet grades into the Edwards limestone, and some of the fossils fromAlocality 17-23 posed in a bluff section and is de- well is known to have gone through used in building. A few of these beds to the east and west of the they will range from* about 2,500 to of the quadrangle is in the Llano River of Comanche Peak limestone, and 3 the boundary is arbitrarily placed at are also probably from the Comanche scribed below. the Cretaceous. To the east in the are of hard, light-colored limestone Peak limestone. Creek quadrangle, the Rown- 4,000 feet in depth. drainage basin and is drained by Ed- feet of Walnut clay. The boundaries the base of a thin-bedded, very fine- The fossils have been The portion of the Edwards lime- Spring which should be an attractive building by Dr. Ralph Imlay as No. Kott well entered wards Creek, Maverick Spring Branch, between the units are gradational, and grained limestone which contains chert identified fol- stone above the gypsum horizon in gen- tree 1 the stone. lows: Honeycut formation of Ordovician age, — and theheadwatersof Threadgill Creek, for this quadrangle, Thompson's (1935) in some outcrops in adjacent quad- eral is composed of softer materials, RoadRoad material. Caliche derived from these, and to the southwest in the Dry Selected References which reach Llano River by way of observation that units should have rangles. Locality 17-13A, along Edwards and immediately above the gypsum the weathering of Edwards limestone Threadgill and Beaver Creek. about the rank seems logi- horizon many of the limestone are Branch quadrangle, the Owen No. 1 has been used for the surfacing of Creek of members The Comanche Peak limestone con- Creek—in north portion of quad- beds Barnes, V. E. (1944) Gypsum in the Harper quadrangle is on the introducing a rangle various angles, indicating col- Tatsch well entered rocks of Pennsyl- secondary roads and The cal. However, instead of tains considerableargillaceous material tilted at for base-course Edwards limestone of central Texas: south side of the Llano uplift, and Cre- new name, Fredericksburg could easily Monopleura pinguiseula White lapse. The Edwards limestone forming vanian age. In view of the extensive materials in highway construction. This Univ. Texas Pub. 4301, Jan. 1, 1943, especially in its basal part. The lower Caprinula crassifibra (Roemer) pre-Cretaceous pp. 35-46. taceous rocks crop out in all of the be dropped from group to formational the highest outcrops within the quad- faulting in the rocks of material while of use for surfacing portion of the Comanche Peak tends Pseudonerinea? spp. (1948) facies in quadrangle. Rocks of Cambrian and rank, especially as the U. S. Geological (Neithea) duplicicosta rangle appears to be undisturbed and the Llano uplift, many rock units may secondary roads has little value for Ouachita to be nodular, is mostly burrowed, and Pecten central Texas: Bur.