Geological notes and local details for 1:10 000 scale Sheet SD 68 NW (Middleton) and part of Sheet SD 68 NE (Gawthrop) Geology and Landscapes Northern Britain Programme Internal Report IR/06/101 BRITISH GEOLOGICAL SURVEY GEOLOGY AND LANDSCAPES NORTHERN BRITAIN PROGRAMME INTERNAL REPORT IR/06/101 Geological notes and local details for 1:10 000 scale Sheet SD 68 The National Grid and other NW (Middleton) and part of Ordnance Survey data are used with the permission of the Controller of Her Majesty’s Sheet SD 68 NE (Gawthrop) Stationery Office. Licence No: 100017897/2006. Keywords N H Woodcock, R B Rickards Report; Windermere Supergroup; Ordovician; Silurian; Cumbria. Bibliographical reference WOODCOCK, N.H. AND RICKARDS, R.B., 2006. Geological notes and local details for 1:10 000 scale Sheet SD 68 NW (Middleton) and part of Sheet SD 68 NE (Gawthrop). British Geological Survey Internal Report, IR/06/101. 38pp. Copyright in materials derived from the British Geological Survey’s work is owned by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and/or the authority that commissioned the work. You may not copy or adapt this publication without first obtaining permission. Contact the BGS Intellectual Property Rights Section, British Geological Survey, Keyworth, e-mail [email protected]. You may quote extracts of a reasonable length without prior permission, provided a full acknowledgement is given of the source of the extract. Maps and diagrams in this book use topography based on Ordnance Survey mapping. © NERC 2006. All rights reserved Keyworth, Nottingham British Geological Survey 2006 BRITISH GEOLOGICAL SURVEY The full range of Survey publications is available from the BGS British Geological Survey offices Sales Desks at Nottingham, Edinburgh and London; see contact details below or shop online at www.geologyshop.com Keyworth, Nottingham NG12 5GG The London Information Office also maintains a reference 0115-936 3241 Fax 0115-936 3488 collection of BGS publications including maps for consultation. e-mail: [email protected] The Survey publishes an annual catalogue of its maps and other www.bgs.ac.uk publications; this catalogue is available from any of the BGS Sales Shop online at: www.geologyshop.com Desks. 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(Earth Galleries), Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London SW7 2DE The British Geological Survey is a component body of the Natural Environment Research Council. 020-7589 4090 Fax 020-7584 8270 020-7942 5344/45 email: [email protected] Forde House, Park Five Business Centre, Harrier Way, Sowton, Exeter, Devon EX2 7HU 01392-445271 Fax 01392-445371 Geological Survey of Northern Ireland, Colby House, Stranmillis Court, Belfast BT9 5BF 028-9038 8462 Fax 028-9038 8461 Maclean Building, Crowmarsh Gifford, Wallingford, Oxfordshire OX10 8BB 01491-838800 Fax 01491-692345 Columbus House, Greenmeadow Springs, Tongwynlais, Cardiff, CF15 7NE 029–2052 1962 Fax 029–2052 1963 Parent Body Natural Environment Research Council, Polaris House, North Star Avenue, Swindon, Wiltshire SN2 1EU 01793-411500 Fax 01793-411501 www.nerc.ac.uk IR/06/101: Issue 1.0 Last modified 2006/06/14 Foreword This report is the published product of a study by Dr N H Woodcock and Professor B Rickards of the Department of Earth Sciences in the University of Cambridge, commissioned by the British Geological Survey (BGS) and completed under Contract 2K02E024. The report describes the geology of 1:10 000-scale Bedrock and Superficial Deposits Geology Series sheets SD 68 NW and NE, which constitute part of the England and Wales 1:50 000 series sheet 49, Kirkby Lonsdale. This report should be read in conjunction with the 1:10 000-scale maps. Acknowledgements The authors extend their thanks to all the local landowners and tenant farmers for access to their land, but particularly to Dr Helga Frankland and Dr Juliet Frankland for access to their land in Dentdale and for valuable advice on other access issues. They are grateful to Dr Jack Soper and Dr David Millward for field discussions on the geology. Contents Foreword........................................................................................................................................ii Acknowledgements........................................................................................................................ii Contents..........................................................................................................................................ii Summary........................................................................................................................................ v 1 Introduction............................................................................................................................ 1 2 Previous Work........................................................................................................................ 2 2.1 Bedrock geology.............................................................................................................2 2.2 Quaternary geology........................................................................................................ 4 3 Dent Group ............................................................................................................................. 5 3.1 Distribution and definition.............................................................................................. 5 3.2 Cautley Mudstone Formation ......................................................................................... 5 3.3 Ashgill Formation?......................................................................................................... 6 3.4 Depositional environment of the Dent Group ................................................................ 6 4 Tranearth Group.................................................................................................................... 6 4.1 Distribution and definition.............................................................................................. 6 4.2 Brathay Formation.......................................................................................................... 7 4.3 Coldwell Formation........................................................................................................ 8 4.4 Wray Castle Formation................................................................................................... 9 ii IR/06/101: Issue 1.0 Last modified 2006/06/14 4.5 Depositional environment of the Tranearth Group......................................................... 9 5 Coniston Group .................................................................................................................... 10 5.1 Distribution and definition............................................................................................ 10 5.2 Screes Gill Formation................................................................................................... 10 5.3 Undivided Coniston Group........................................................................................... 11 5.4 Biostratigraphy of the Coniston Group ........................................................................ 11 5.5 Depositional environment of the Coniston Group........................................................ 12 6 Kendal Group: Bannisdale Formation............................................................................... 13 6.1 Definition...................................................................................................................... 13 6.2 Distribution................................................................................................................... 14 6.3 Lower division of the Bannisdale Formation ............................................................... 14 6.4 Upper division of the Bannisdale Formation................................................................ 15 6.5 Biostratigraphy of the Bannisdale Formation............................................................... 16 6.6 Depositional environment of the Bannisdale Formation.............................................. 17 7 Kendal Group: Kirkby Moor Formation .......................................................................... 17 7.1 Definition and distribution............................................................................................ 17 7.2 Lower division of the Kirkby Moor Formation............................................................ 18 7.3 Upper division of the Kirkby Moor Formation ............................................................ 18 7.4 Biostratigraphy of the Kirkby Moor Formation ........................................................... 19 7.5 DepoSitional environment of the Kirkby Moor Formation.......................................... 19 8 Igneous intrusions ................................................................................................................ 20 9 Carboniferous