Johnson Mine Clay Pit, Edmonson Co., Kentucky, USA

Age: Pennsylvanian (298.9 - 323.2 Ma)

Stratigraphic Name: Caseyville Formation

Comments: in western Kentucky, thickness is at least 150+ m

Lithology: Major:{sandstone}, Minor:{siltstone,conglomerate}, Incidental:{shale, coal}

Reference: Horton, J.D., C.A. San Juan, and D.B. Stoeser. The State Geologic Map Compilation (SGMC) geodatabase of the conterminous United States. doi: 10.3133/ds1052. U.S. Geological Survey Data Series 1052. [133]

Age: Pennsylvanian (307 - 323.2 Ma)

Description: Upper 200 feet Interbedded sandstone, siltstone, shale, and coal: Sandstone, white where fresh, iron-stained various shades of brown and moderate reddish brown; very fine to medium grained; very thin to very thick bedded, locally crossbedded. Siltstone, white to yellowish-gray; weathers brown and yellowish brown; laminated to very thin bedded. Shale, silty in central and western parts of quadrangle, light-gray to dark-gray and black; weathers yellowish gray. Coal, exclusive of thin layers of very carbonaceous shale, locally present in two beds; upper coal, 4 to 10 inches thick, and lower coal, 6 to 8 inches thick, may be equivalents respectively of No. 1b and No. 1a coals of Western Kentucky coal basin. \nUpper sandstone interval: Sandstone, white to light-gray, iron-stained brown and pink, very fine to coarse-grained; contains few rounded quartz pebbles and granules; thin to thick bedded, locally crossbedded; grades laterally into interbedded sandstone, siltstone, and shale of overlying unit. Unit is Bee Spring Sandstone as used by Moore (1877). \nLower fine-grained interval: Shale, sandstone, and coal: Shale, dark-gray, medium-gray; weathers yellowish orange; grades laterally into, and interfingers with, sandstone of overlying unit. Coal present in two beds: upper bed, 7 to 10 inches thick, near top of unit; lower bed is Main Nolin coal as used by Weller (1927, p. 221). \nBasal sandstone interval: Conglomerate, sandstone, and shale: Conglomerate and sandstone, white where fresh, iron-stained yellowish orange to moderate red and moderate reddish-brown; thin to thick bedded, in part crossbedded. Sandstone, locally asphaltic, very fine to coarse-grained; weathers dark gray to medium gray where asphaltic. Conglomerate, composed of well-rounded granules and pebbles of quartz in a sandstone matrix; pebbles predominantly less than 1/2 inch in major diameter: grades laterally into sandstone. Shale, medium light-gray, sandy; weathers yellowish orange. Unit fills deep southwestward-trending channel across quadrangle; in outcrop base rests successively upon Vienna Limestone, Tar Springs Sandstone, Glen Dean Limestone, Hardinsburg Sandstone, and Haney Limestone Member of Golconda Formation. \nEconomic (coal): Coal has been mined from the Tradewater and Caseyville Formations; most of the production was from the Main Nolin coal bed which occurs in the lower part of the shale unit overlying the basal sandstone and conglomerate. It was exploited most extensively in the Dismal Creek area by strip mines and underground workings. In outcrop the coal bed ranges in thickness from 24 to 48 inches and averages about 30 to 36 inches thick. No coal mines were in operation in the quadrangle during the geologic mapping. \nTRADEWATER AND CASEYVILLE FORMATIONS USGS Unit Info: not available Interbedded sandstone, siltstone, shale, and coal: Sandstone, white where fresh, iron-stained various shades of brown and moderate reddish brown; very fine to medium grained; very thin to very thick bedded, locally crossbedded. Siltstone, white to yellowish-gray; weathers brown and yellowish brown; laminated to very thin bedded. Shale, silty in central and western parts of quadrangle, light-gray to dark-gray and black; weathers yellowish gray. Coal, exclusive of thin layers of very carbonaceous shale, locally present in two beds; upper coal, 4 to 10 inches thick, and lower coal, 6 to 8 inches thick, may be equivalents respectively of No. 1b and No. 1a coals of Western Kentucky coal basin. \nSandstone, white to light-gray, iron-stained brown and pink, very fine to coarse-grained; contains few rounded quartz pebbles and granules; thin to thick bedded, locally crossbedded; grades laterally into interbedded sandstone, siltstone, and shale of overlying unit. Unit is Bee Spring Sandstone as used by Moore (1877). \nShale, sandstone, and coal: Shale, dark-gray, medium-gray; weathers yellowish orange; grades laterally into, and interfingers with, sandstone of overlying unit. Coal present in two beds: upper bed, 7 to 10 inches thick, near top of unit; lower bed is Main Nolin coal as used by Weller (1927, p. 221). \nConglomerate, sandstone, and shale: Conglomerate and sandstone, white where fresh, iron-stained yellowish orange to moderate red and moderate reddish-brown; thin to thick bedded, in part crossbedded. Sandstone, locally asphaltic, very fine to coarse-grained; weathers dark gray to medium gray where asphaltic. Conglomerate, composed of well-rounded granules and pebbles of quartz in a sandstone matrix; pebbles predominantly less than 1/2 inch in major diameter: grades laterally into sandstone. Shale, medium light-gray, sandy; weathers yellowish orange. Unit fills deep southwestward-trending channel across quadrangle; in outcrop base rests successively upon Vienna Limestone, Tar Springs Sandstone, Glen Dean Limestone, Hardinsburg Sandstone, and Haney Limestone Member of Golconda Formation. \nEconomic (coal): Coal has been mined from the Tradewater and Caseyville Formations; most of the production was from the Main Nolin coal bed which occurs in the lower part of the shale unit overlying the basal sandstone and conglomerate. It was exploited most extensively in the Dismal Creek area by strip mines and underground workings. In outcrop the coal bed ranges in thickness from 24 to 48 inches and averages about 30 to 36 inches thick. No coal mines were in operation in the quadrangle during the geologic mapping.

Comments: Ptc; Bee Spring Quadrangle (GQ-757) | http://kgs.uky.edu/kgsweb/PubsSearching/MoreInfo.asp?titleInput=838 | Map description and column: http://kgs.uky.edu/kgsmap/kgsgeoserver/geolDescID.asp?idType=pointID&fmcode=324TRCV&gq_num=757&map_level=24K

Lithology: Sandstone | siltstone | shale | coal

Reference: KGS Databases, Maps, and Publications. Kentucky 1:24,000 Geologic Map. Kentucky Geological Survey. [22]