Geology of the Funeral Peak Quadrangle, California, on the East Flank of Death Valley GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 413 Geology of the Funeral Peak Quadrangle, California, on the East Flank of Death Valley By HARALD DREWES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 413 A description of the structural development of part of a large block including contributions on megabrecciaS) turtlebacks^ and chaotic structure overlying the Amargosa thrust fault UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON : 1963 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR STEWART L. UDALL, Secretary GEOLOGICAL SURVEY Thomas B. Nolan, Director For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Washington 25, D.C. CONTENTS Page Page Abstract_--_--__----_________________________ 1 Tertiary volcanic and sedimentary rocks Continued Introduction --------_-_-______________-______._ 2 Copper Canyon formation Continued Location_ ---------_-____________-________ 2 Fauna__ _ __________________________________ 35 Objectives and methods_-_-_______..________ 2 Age and correlation_________________________ 36 Acknowledgments_ _----_---_______..______ 3 Origin and environment.____________________ 36 General geographic features._________________ 3 Greenwater volcanics-__--_____-_---_----------__ 37 General geologic features- _ ---__-___--_______ 4 General description___-__-________-_-____--_ 37 Precambrian rocks._-----_--_-__________________ 5 Vitrophyre member.________________________ 38 Metasedimentary rocks______________________ 5 Petrology-_________________________________ 41 General description _____________________ 5 Tuff-breccia member____________-______-____ 42 Petrography ___________________________ 6 Age and correlation-__-_---_________-_--_--_ 42 Origin and age _________________________ 7 Origin and environment_______-__----_-___-_ 42 Metadiorite_ _--------__-___________________ 7 Tertiary andesite and basalt-____________________ 42 General description. ____________________ 7 General description. ___-____-_____-_---___-_ 42 Petrography__ _________________________ 8 Petrography _______________________________ 43 Origin and age-_--_--__________________ 9 Age and correlation.______________-_-___---- 45 Feldspathic and andesitic dikes.______________ 10 Origin and environment.____________________ 45 Pahrump series(?)_--_-----_._______________ 10 Tertiary and Quaternary rocks. ______________________ 45 Cambrian and Ordovician rocks __________________ 11 Funeral formation__-_______________-_-_-.__-_-- 45 General description _________________________ 11 General description--___--________--__-___-- 45 Petrography _______________________________ 12 Conglomerate member.____________________ 46 Age and correlation.________________________ 13 Andesite and basalt member.________________ 47 Tertiary plutonic rocks___------_---_____________ 13 Megabreccia member____-_-----_---------.-_ 48 Quartz monzonite and porphyritic quartz latite. 14 Age and correlation.______.______--_-_----__ 50 General description. ____________________ 14 Origin and environment_____________________ 50 Petrography ___________________________ 14 Quaternary rocks________________________--_---___-- 52 Porphyritic quartz monzonite ________________ 16 Subangular and moderately well indurated gravel.-- 52 General description _____________________ 16 Subrounded and poorly indurated gravel ___________ 53 Petrography- --_-_---___-___-__________ 16 Subangular and poorly indurated gravel___________ 53 Dikes associated with the monzonitic rocks_ __ 17 Subangular and poorly to moderately well indurated Petrology of the monzonitic rocks.____________ 17 gravel- ______________________________________ 53 Age of the monzonitic rocks__________________ 19 Surficial deposits________________-__--_-_-_-_-- 54 Tertiary volcanic and sedimentary rocks.__-_____-- 22 Structure ______________-_______-_______---_-----_-- 54 Older volclanics-____________________________ 23 General description-______-__________------_---- 54 Extrusive and sedimentary rocks..________ 23 Precambrian structural features __________________ 54 General description.________________ 23 Master faults________.___--_____-___---------- 55 Lava flows_________________________ 24 Amargosa thrust fault-__________________________ 57 Petrology._____________________ 25 General description. ______________-___-_-_-- 57 Pyroclastic rocks _______________ 26 Possible thrust conglomerate___-_._--____-_-- 58 Epiclastic rocks_______________ 26 Direction and magnitude of movement._____-. 58 Origin and environment___-______._- 27 Age of thrust faulting-_.__-_________-_-___-- 58 Intrusive rocks _________________________ 27 Origin of the thrust fault ____________________ 58 General description _________________ 27 Black Mountains fault system_____-___------_-_-- 61 Petrography _______________________ 28 General description. _____________----_-_-_-- 61 Origin and environment.....--------- 29 Fault scarps and facets-_____________________ 63 Age and correlation._____--______._- 29 Displacement along fault- ___________________ 63 Furnace Creek formation.___________________ 30 Ages and rates of faulting.-..________________ 66 General description_____________________ 30 Turtleback faults.------------------------------ 66 Petrography _----_-_--_________________ 30 Other faults.___________________________________ 67 Quaternary(?) folds----------------------------- 67 Age and correlation.____________________ 31 Economic deposits________________________-_-_---_-- 68 Environment. ----_-_________________.__ 32 Copper and barite______________________________ 68 Copper Canyon formation.__________________ 32 Gold, silver, and lead-___-___---____-_.---------- 69 Definition, _____________________________ 32 Other deposits____________-________--_-----_-- 69 General description_____________________ 32 Geologic history____________________________________ 70 Conglomerate member_________________ 34 References cited_______--_---_-_--------_--_-------- 74 Siltstone and evaporite member._________ 34 Index..._______._-______-_--___-___-_----_---- 75 in IV OONTE3STTS ILLUSTRATIONS [Plates are in pocket] PLATE 1. Geologic map of the Funeral Peak quadrangle. Page 2. Map and section of chaotic Paleozoic blocks and volcanic rocks in Hidden Spring area. FIGURE 1. Physiographic diagram of parts of the Great Basin, Sierra Nevada, and Mojave Desert, showing the location of the Funeral Peak area_____-_______________________________-____--___--___-____------__---_-__--_ 2 2. Generalized geologic map of the Black Mountains fault block and vicinity-__________-____--____-_-_-__---- 5 3. West flank of Black Mountains north of peak 4214, just south of Sheep Canyon____________________________ 8 4. Cambrian and Ordovician sedimentary rocks on the Amargosa thrust fault_______________________________ 11 5. Copper Canyon formation on the south wall of Copper Canyon near its mouth_____________________________ 33 6. Greenwater volcanics two-thirds of a mile northwest of knob 3619_______________________-_-___--___--_--_ 38 7. Schematic block diagram of part of the Copper Canyon area.____________________________________________ 49 8. Geologic and paleogeographic features during Funeral time._____________________________________________ 51 9. Schematic block diagram showing an early stage of development of the Amargosa thrust fault and the overlying chaotic blocks__________________________________________________________________________________ 59 10. Rocks along the Black Mountains fault system_________________________________________________________ 62 11. Facets along the west flank of the Black Mountains___________________________________________________ 64 12. Fault scarp on the east side of Death Valley______________________________________-___________-_-_----_ 65 13. Mineralized areas with copper, barite, and gold, silver, and lead, and their relations to porphyritic rhyolitic in­ trusive rocks, monzonitic rocks, and faults___________-______________________-_---__----__------------ 68 14. Schematic block diagram showing development of structure and topography of the Black Mountains block during Tertiary and Quaternary time_____________________________-___-____-_-__-----______.-------- 72 TABLES Page TABLE 1. Modal analyses of metadiorite______________________________________________________________________ 9 2. Modal analyses of monzonitic rocks___________________________-_-_-_-__________________-__-___---_--_- 15 3. Modal analyses of porphyritic quartz monzonite________________________________________________________ 17 4. Chemical and spectrographic analyses, modes, and norms of rocks from the Funeral Peak quadrangle._________ 18 5. Some properties of the older volcanics.________________________________________________________________ 24 6. Frequency of occurrence and abundance of phenocrysts and xenocrysts in the extrusive rocks of the older volcanics ________________________________________________________________________________________ 24 7. Frequency of occurrence and abundance of phenocrysts and xenocrysts in the intrusive rocks of the older vol- canics. __________________________________________________________________________________________ 29 8. Frequency of occurrence and abundance of constituents in vitrophyres of the Greenwater volcanics____________ 40 9. Some physical characteristics of vitrophyres of the Greenwater volcanics____________--______________---- 40 10. Modes of andesite and basalt of Tertiary age________________________________-____________________----_- 44 11. Some