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Contact: FOR FURTHER PLEASE CONTACT: BY TELEPHONE: BY E-MAIL: INFORMATION ON The Reproduction of MNDMF Publication Local: (705) 670-5691 the EIP or Content Services Toll Free: 1-888-415-9845, ext. 5691 [email protected] (inside Canada, United States) The Purchase of MNDMF Publication Local: (705) 670-5691 MNDMF Publications Sales Toll Free: 1-888-415-9845, ext. 5691 [email protected] (inside Canada, United States) Crown Copyright Queen’s Printer Local: (416) 326-2678 Toll Free: 1-800-668-9938 [email protected] (inside Canada, United States) Ontario Department of Mines Geological Branch Open File Report 5008 Pleistocene Geology of the Guelph Area 1966 ONTARIO DEPARTMENT OF MINES GEOLOGICAL BRANCH OPEN FILE REPORT No 5008 PLEISTOCENE GEOLOGY OF THE GUELPH AREA WATERLOO, WELLINGTON AND HALTON COUNTIES APRIL 3, 1967 '/;? rtJ^t V/* S', GEOLOGICAL BRANCH IfONTARIc O PARLIAMENT BUILDINGS DEPARTMENT OF MiNES TORONTO 2. ONTARIO Open-file Reports Open-file reports are made available to the public subject to certain conditions. Anyone using them shall be deemed to have agreed to these conditions which are as follows: This report is unedited. Discrepancies may occur for which the Department does not assume liability. Open-file copies may be read at the following places: The Library (Room 1433, Whitney Block), Department of Mines, Parliament Buildings, Toronto. The office of the Resident Geologist in whose district the area covered by this report is located. A report cannot be taken out of these offices. Handwritten notes and sketches may be made from it. This particular report is on file in the Resident Geologist's office located at: 500 University Avenue, Toronto. Open-file reports cannot be handed out for office reading until a card, giving the name and address of the applicant, is filed with the Resident Geologist or Librarian. A copy of this report is available for inter- library loan. The Department cannot supply photocopies. Arrangements may be made for photocopying by an outside firm at the userTs expense. The Librarian or Resident Geologist will supply information about these arrangements. The right to reproduce this report is reserved by the Ontario Department of Mines. Permis­ sion for other reproduction must be obtained in writing from the Director, Geological Branch. J. E„ Thomson, Director, Geological Branch. ONTARIO DEPARTMENT OF MINES PLEISTOCENE GEOLOGY OF THE GUELPH AREA BY P.F. KARROW Geological Report No. 500! 1966 Introduction Location and access Population Climate Topography Drainage Previous work Field work Acknowledgement s Paleozoic Geology Ordovician Silurian Economic geology Bedrock Topography Pleistocene Geology Drift thickness Geomorphology General Till plain Drumlins Moraines Karnes Crevass^ fillings Eskers Outwash plains and terrac Swamps and bogs Stratigraphy General Grand River sections Catfish Creek Till Middle till Wentworth Till Northern till Ablation deposits Pond deposits Alluvial deposits Swamp and bog deposits Historical geology Economic geology General Clay Sand and gravel Water supply Peat Engineering geology Appendices A Descriptions of measured sections 33 Grand River sections 33 Other sections 34 B Till analyses (Back pocket) References 39 Diagrams (Back pocket) : Figure 1. Key map showing location of the Guelph area. Figure 2. Grand River stratigraphic sections. Figure 3. Mechanical analyses of tills. Figure 4. Occurrences of red till. Tables Formations and events 17A Summary of till analyses (Back pocket) Preliminary Map (Back pocket) P. 189 Guelph Area (Pleistocene geology) Scale 1:50,000 v Not included with this report. ** Preliminary map may be purchased at Publications Office, Ontario Department of Mines, Whitney Block, Parliament Buildings, Toronto. Abstract The Guelph area, northwest of the west end of Lake Ontario, is underlain by Silurian dolomites of the Guelph and Amabel formations. Sandy Catfish Creek Till was deposited by ice flowing southward during Tazewell time. The origin of overlying clay till of Cary age is unknown. The youngest till, on top of the three-till sequence, is the Wentworth Till (Port Huron age), deposited by westward-moving ice of the Ontario lobe which formed the Guelph drumlin field and the Paris and Gait moraines. The edge of the Wentworth Till sheet crosses the northwest corner of the area. Clayey sand till, originating from the southeastward- moving Georgian Bay ice lobe, is the surface till in the northwest corner of the area. Large sand and gravel deposits occur in outwash plains, kames, eskers, in extensive spillway terraces along the Grand River and in a network of spillway channels in the Guelph drumlin field. PLEISTOCENE GEOLOGY OF THE GUELPH AREA BY P. F. Karrow 1 INTRODUCTION Location and Access The Guelph area is situated in the southeastern part of the interlake peninsula of southern Ontario. It is covered by sheet 40 P/9 (Guelph) of the National Topographic Series and has an area of about 400 square miles. The area extends from latitude 43° 30' N. to 43° 45' N. and from longitude 80° 00' W. to 80° 30' W. The area includes parts of the counties of Waterloo, Wellington, and Halton. Excellent access is available through a grid of township roads at about one-mile intervals. Several paved county roads cross parts of the area. Provincial highways, Nos. 6, 7, 24, 25, and 86 serve the area. High­ way 401 passes within two miles of the south edge of the area. Several lines of the Canadian National Railways and Canadian Pacific Railway serve the area. Population The area extends into the densely settled industrial core of the 2 Province. The largest urban centre is Guelph, with a population of 40,918; it is centrally located near the southern boundary of the area. Other, smaller, centres in the area include Acton (4,354), Fergus (4,009), and Elora (1,489), situated in the eastern and northwestern parts of the area respectively. The suburban fringes of Kitchener and Waterloo, having a combined popu­ lation of over 100,000, lie just beyond the southwestern corner of the area. Climate Climatic data for Guelph, obtained from the Meteorological Branch of the Canada Department of Transport are as follows: Department of Earth Sciences, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario. Manuscript received by the Chief Geologist, Geological Branch, Ontario Department of Mines, Jan 28 1966 2Ontario Department of Municipal Affairs 1963. - 2 - Annual Averages Precipitation (inches) Temperature (degrees Fahrenheit) Rain Snow Total Maximum Minimum Mean 27.16 56.40 32.80 53.3 35.8 44.6 Topography Elevations in the area range from a maximum of 1525 feet above sea level, in the extreme northwest corner of the area, to a minimum of 1000 feet along the valleys of the Grand and Speed rivers, in the southwest part of the area; this yields a total relief of a little more than 500 feet.