Utah State University DigitalCommons@USU All U.S. Government Documents (Utah Regional U.S. Government Documents (Utah Regional Depository) Depository) 2000 Type Locality for the Great Blue Limestone in the Bingham Nappe, Oquirrh Mountains, Utah United States Geological Survey Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/govdocs Part of the Geology Commons Recommended Citation United States Geological Survey, "Type Locality for the Great Blue Limestone in the Bingham Nappe, Oquirrh Mountains, Utah" (2000). All U.S. Government Documents (Utah Regional Depository). Paper 57. https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/govdocs/57 This Report is brought to you for free and open access by the U.S. Government Documents (Utah Regional Depository) at DigitalCommons@USU. It has been accepted for inclusion in All U.S. Government Documents (Utah Regional Depository) by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@USU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. 2 T OLE OF O. 'TENT Pag e l1USGS . ~ Abstrn.ct. , " ... , .....................• , ....•..... ,. 4 sClonco fa.,. 3 ch3ngmq world Introducti on .... , ...... .. .... , .... , . .. 5 Regional Geologic Selling of the Bingham Nappe , . , ... , . ,. 8 The Type Section of the Great Bluc Limestone ... , .. , .. , . '. 9 Local ion .................. , , . .. ,. ......... , 9 Type Locality for the General Lithologic Charncteristics of the Great Bluc Ltmestone. , , ..... .. ...... ' ........ , , .. , .. , , 10 Great Blue Limestone Silveropolis Limestone Member of Tooker and Gordon. ( 1978)....... , ................ II in the Bingham Nappe, Long Trail Shale Member. ...... , ........ .... 11 Mcrcur Limestnne Member of Tooker and Gordon (1978)................ ... , . 12 Oquirrh Mountains, Fossils and Age of the Great Blue Limes.one, . , ...... 14 Regional Lithologic anli Faunal Correlations of the Great Bluc Utall Limestone ... .... .. , . , .... , ...... , ... , , ....... , . 16 East Tintic Mountains ........ , .. , ...... , . , ... , . , . 17 Southern Oquirrh Mountains-Fivemile Pass appe ... I Nonhern Oquirrh Mountains-Ro,;;en. Canyon appc." 18 Wasatch Mou ntains-Timp:mo!;oS Nappe . , ........... 19 by Ma<.:kenzic Gordon. Jrl. Edwin \V , Too k ~r~ and Wasatch Moulltains-Mount Raymond Nappe . .. .... 20 J. Thomas Dutro. Jr.' Promontory Mountains . 21 Other Neighboring Ranges of the Oquirrh Mountains ........ 22 References Cited ... , ..................... ............. 23 Open · Fil e Report- OF ')0·012 Appendices I . Type locality of the Great Blue Limestone on 2000 Silveropolis Hill. Ophir mining district. Utah . ...26 2. ,{eference locality. Mercur limestone member. Tit" r~port " prc li nllnar) Jnu 11." nul h~~n r~\ I~\\~d fur conlormll~ \\ IIh .5 . G~olugkal un'cy cUllonal ~t3nuard, or \\ IIh th~ North A",~ncJn Great Bluc Limestone. Mercur mil'ing district • (i3li graphl c C\)dl! . r\ ny U\c of trJtil..', tlnn. or pn.'duct nJm~, h fur Utah ............ ......... , .. , ... .... , .. ... 46 'cscriptivc purpos~s only anu uuc, nut Impl~ ~ndor<emcnt b~ the L· .s Gu \'crnmcnt U.. DEI' RTMENT OF THE I."OT ERIOR U.S, GEOLOGIC L • R'EY I [;c ~a,cd. z Icnlo Park, CA. anu 1\V a,hlngton. D.C. 3 ILL STR TIO The typ_ locality for the Great llIue Limc~tone In he FIGURE Pag~ Bingham nappe Oquirrh 1ountuins, tuh, J. Index map showing the locution <If the Bingham. Ophir. by Mackenzie Gordon. Jr. l. Edwin W. Tooker. and J. Thomas Dutro. Jr. and Mereur mining districts in the southern Oquirrh Mountuins. Utah. .. 54 Ab tract 2. Evolution cf stratigraphic nomenclature for the The Great Bluc Lime tone wa .1amed onglO:'!!}, by purr Great Blue Limestone and conformable (1895) from exposure ncar the lereur "',"IDg d"trtcI in Ihe enclosing form tions in tbe Oquirrh Mountains Oquirrh Mounlain • Utah. The formation wa\ dc\crtbed ID gre.tcr type loeality. 55 detail by Gilluly (1932) In the Oplur mID'"ll dl'lrkt. either formal" 3. Geologic selling in the Bingham nappe in the e tablished a type locality for thi formal! II '" the qumh southern Oquirrh Mountains and the location of Mountuins. Howcvcr. thc formatl n h,,, ~IDce been correblcd the Oreal Blue Limestone type and reference "ooudly with similar ·edimentary rock- else" here '" the adJOIo'"ll measured cclions... ...................... ....... 56 Rocky Mounta,"s and Greal B:lsin region,. Fm Ihe record. and to 4. Diagrammatic columnar section of the Silvcropolis u. sist futurc corrclations. a type mea~ured ,ectlon 01 the Great Blue limestone member of the Great Blue Lime tone. .. 57 I.imcstonc in the OqUirrh Mountains IS locmed. dc\.:rtbcd. ami a 5. Diagrammatic columnar section of the Long Trail Shale dC lol iled measured e tiol' IS IDeluded '" the appcndix . Member of the Great Blue Lime ton' ................ 5 6. Diagrammatic columnar scction of the Mercur The Great Blue LlllIe'tonc con\l\!' III three IlIcmhcr,. The lime tone member of the Grcat Blue Limestone ....... 59 ilvcropolls lime. tone melllber of Tooker and Gnrdun (I CJ7 ). \\ hleh 7 Diagrammatic columnar cction of Ihe Grcat Blue i\ thc unnamed lower limestone of JlIIIlI~ (19J2). It I ;1 ~(iO m­ Limestonft showing the localion of fossil collection. thick stratigraphic section compo~cd of dark-!!r;l~. IllcdlUm.bedJcd the faunal zones. and age series repr~ entcd. 60 limestone. intercabled \\ith sand Mane .. nd arl.!lIla~cou, IIme,wne. 8. Regional correlations of the age equivalents of the This is overlain by the Long Trail hale. "hose type locality Gillul~ Great Blue Limestonc in the Oquirrh Muuntains (1932) specified at the head of Long Tr:1I1 Gulch III Ihe Oplllr nunm!' and adjoining mounluin ranges ...................... 61 dhtrict. It is 33 m th ick and composed of carhonJccou\ gr;)) shak and interbedded fos3iliferous medium-llray hOle. tone. The 'ereur limestone member of Tooker nnd Gordon (19711). which I' Gliluly\ ( 1932) unnamed upper limestone. i< 471 m Ihick and composed (11 alternating dark-gray fossiliferous. sand). and chert) hllle\lunC' eparalcd by interbedded shale and ,haly limestone mter"a"- The type locality of the Ore;lt Blue Lime,tone i\ nn Ihe ~a'l. trcnding ridge I. km .outh of Oplur (Mercur 7.5-IllI1111tc I Mr. Gordon died before a final d, ... (, nr Ihh ",", 'II ".1' \."t'"I,II.',<J 6 qu,ldl,1II Furthermorc. thc impat t of th rust-fault ,crrancs in 'he Sevier 1'1 I ""C I. ,I (",I h, t, 11111 .. ?lO, .lIId m .111 ,'II,<t lI,h III tn th,' orogenic belt on the regional di tribution of the Greal Blue Limestone ,outhea t. e" t".r I hI thc Suuth hll k 01 Oplm (. JIl\ <1'1. I hc and its correla,ive fonnalions is not generally recognized. For the e Imlllat"," " 7h' III tilld. fC,t' l'II"l<lrl11.,ol\ ,III Ihe lIullloul! reasons. the straligraphic and paleontologic characteristic of the !'nrm.UItHl, ,Ind I p\,,'rl.lIll (unIUltU~lhh I" the \I.mnul~ '~my(Jn Great Blue Limestone art' detailed here and compared with Shako counterparts in the region, Finally. the upper part of the Silveropoli limestone member of the formation is a favorable stratigraphic ite I Ill' .,·c \II 'he (;.e.1I Bluc I .IIlC 'I'''C .' I ,IIC \11",,,,1'1"''"' I hc for the occurrence of dis eminated gold deposits in the southern uPI>cr p.ut III 'he I \111 KOI'I" 1.1 t \1 Cur.II /.n"c, tlatc" \ kr.ullec"ml. Oquirrh Mounlains (Kornze and others. 1985) and perhaps o"ur'c. 'he lo\\c, .1.\ III III Ihe I",wr 'lIcl1Ihcr Ah.,w ,Ill', 'he el ewhere, 111"11011111" " lI"'"c"all 111 .,ce I he (,\"1 1\ C,.,.,I /.olle " recllrdcd 1""11 lIn III II' '22 III ahme "ll' o."c, 'hc \Jereu, 11I11<\II\11e The HGURE 1. NEAR HERE nnl~ cur.,1 Oel\\CCIl Ihc '\\0 'Olle, " \\11'11 \I/·\1'IIKI""·\ "'IRI:'I,K UK,\IIKI.\. t '(i,n~ appca" 111 'hc I 'III!! Ira,l "hale .IIIJ COIlIIIlUC' The Greal Blue Limestone was named and described in general up\\"", '" .11 k,M ".e "'I' 01 'hc .\ "'1'1 \ /.nllc terms by Spurr (1895) for outcrops in the Mercur mining district in the southern part of the Oquirrh Mountains, Utah. He characterized . h:'''tlH.,'l1ll'lt( ur the (jre~lt Blu",' IlIIh:"l'lu: l~pC '\.'((1(\n I'\.'rnuh the rocks as comparatively uniform. massive. calcareous lime tones lI10re '~'Iem~ltll' \.'ulIlp.ln"llh ul 'hl' ,,,.lller.ll'h, *'1 Il' .I~l" of dark-gray color, which he estimated to be about 1,410 m thick, (turd.lIl',,· rud.. , III Ihe rC~lUn, rhe thru,I·l.lUh telt.III,,', rc,uItIJl~ Its generall y uniform character is interrupted by two belts of bloc Irul11 lhe ",," 1"'1 Orllccn~ ( .. \.I1l,IHlIlC. I \)fl, ') (0l1t.1I11 t.hlkn.. 'I1(\. " lit carbonaceous and calcareous shale5--0ne situaled near the base and IlihulnCI,,·, th.11 Il,.'prl""'11l ,IH.'1f dCP'hllhl! 111 III Ulh, L II!lUnnl1l\ the other ncar the top, Spurr (1895) further recognized that the \"del~ 'el'.'I.llcd hllllerl.II1J "Ie, n ""~cr. II) '" L\.lIl1pk, 01 ,he,c formation is underlain confontlbbly by a prominent lower u,llcrcl1I:c', \\llIch C.III til' 'CCI. '11 I"rd,md ,hru,1 ''''ppc, Illl\\ loca'eJ intercalated limestone-sandstone sequence, The slope outcrops of "I 'he "",,1"'111 O"U III h, rm,il', \\'."""h, Sla,,,"u!' ,,11 I I'mlll"",elr. the Great Blue Limestone typically are less rugged than the enclosing Muunt"lIh. umJcr,,,'urc ahe I1I.J!!nllu,fc ('I rt.!!!U111.d \ ,.n~IlH'lh In Gn... ~tl formational unil$, Interbedded argillaceous limestone and shale I3lue LUllc"nllc-.lce IlIhul"!!IC', zones in the fonnation. he noted, are characterized at the surface by bands of heavier foliagt. which enhances the typical muted banded I n ' rUU u Clitl ll appearance of the formation. SPUrT' formall nal terminology and unit thicknesses are shown in Figun: 2, Thc {ir,·", IIlue I 'IIIC,III"; " .. I ltm.• d regional stratigraphic. 'Cd,lllell,.llIulI.", ;1Ilt! Cl'(lIIUIIII,' "~II.lll.\O,e, It has lithofacies AGURE 2.