Date of Graduation

12-2013

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Geology (MS)

Degree Level

Graduate

Department

Geosciences

Advisor/Mentor

Doy Zachry

Committee Member

Ralph Davis

Second Committee Member

Greg Dumond

Keywords

Earth sciences, Bedrock, Geology, Geologic map, Rockhouse quadrangle

Abstract

A digital geologic map of the Rockhouse quadrangle, Carroll and Madison counties, Arkansas, was created on a 1:24,000 scale using ArcMap 10 and Photoshop CS4. The data obtained in the field are digitized onto the United States Geological Survey (USGS) digital raster graphic (DRG) of the Rockhouse quadrangle. The geology in the Rockhouse quadrangle consist entirely of sedimentary rocks that are Paleozoic ranging from Lower Ordovician to Mississippian in age. The Ordovician System is represented by the Cotter, Powell, Everton, and St. Peter Formations. The Cotter and Powell are the prominent bluff forming units throughout the quadrangle and along the Kings River. The Devonian unit in this area is the Chattanooga Shale; however the thickness of this unit in the mapping area was too thin to be accurately mapped. The Mississippian units are represented by the St. Joe Limestone and the Boone Limestone. The St. Joe is also a bluff forming unit but does not reach the thickness of the Cotter and Powell. The Boone forms only small scale bluffs, on the order of 10-12 feet in height, but has a very distinctive chert and red clay regolith that dominates the landscape. The only two structural features in the Rockhouse quadrangle are a fault, located in the southwest corner of the mapping area, and the Highway 71 anticline that trends northeast approximately through the middle of the quadrangle. This geologic map represents the first attempt to digitize the lithological contacts of this area. A detailed geologic map gives insight into the formation of the Ozark Dome as well as depositional histories and the features that form the topography of the mapping area. Geologic mapping of the Rockhouse Quadrangle and the surrounding areas is important to the understanding and development of northern Arkansas throughout the Paleozoic and the Ozark plateaus.

Rockhousemap1.pdf (23699 kB)
Rockhouse Map

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