Geology Commons^™

Depositional Environments And Diagenesis Of The Mississippian Bottineau Interval (Lodgepole) In North Dakota, Thomas J. Heck

Theses and Dissertations

Bottineau interval rocks from the North Dakota part of the Williston Basin comprise a single marine transgression/regression cycle, Early Mississippian (lower Scallion subinterval) marine transgression from the restricted depositional environment of the Bakken Formation resulted in normal marine circulation, Six major facies were developed: (1) the central basin, (2) basin flank, (3) open shelf, (4) crinoidal mudstone, (5) gray shale, and (6) restricted shelf. Marine transgression continued until upper Scallion subinter val time, by which time the open shelf facies had already prograded over the gray shale and crinoidal mudstone facies.

Marine regression had begun by middle Bottineau interval (Virden …

Lexicon Of Bedrock Stratigraphic Names Of North Dakota, Joanne Van Ornum Groenewold

Theses and Dissertations

This lexicon of bedrock stratigraphic names of North Dakota consists of a general definition of each unit as well as the history of stratigraphic nomenclature, An attempt was made to include all units for North Dakota whether formally or informally named, or cur rently being used in the state. The general definition includes name(s) of the unit, age, area of extent, lithology, relationships to other units, characteristic fossils, economic significance, depo sitional environment, type section (1£ one has been proposed), and other remarks that might be significant. The history of strati graphic nomenclature includes a chronological listing of the first …

Mineralogy And Chemistry Of Clay-Rich Sediments In The Contact Zone Of The Bullion Creek And Sentinel Butte Formations (Paleocene), Billings County, North Dakota, David W. Brekke

Theses and Dissertations

The Bullion Creek and Sentinel Butte Formations (Paleocene) form over 50 percent of the surface and near surface sediments in the North Dakota part of the Williston Basin. These rocks are composed of sandstones, siltstones, claystones, and numerous lignite beds. A distinct surface color change from light colors in the Bullion Creek Formation to dark colors in the Sentinel Butte Formation serves as a boundary marker and is widely exposed in the Little Missouri River badlands. The color boundary is a product of weathering and is not readily apparent in the subsurface. The use of clay mineralogy was investigated as …

Magnetic Anomalies Over A Portion Of The Granite Mountains, Central Wyoming, Larry F. Smyers

Theses and Dissertations

Precambrian rocks exposed in the northern Pathfinder Reservoir area, Natrona County, Wyoming, are partially exhumed crystalline rocks of the northwestern portion of the Granite Mountains. These rocks comprise three major types: (1) the oldest metamorphic rocks, which may represent a metamorphosed sedimentary-volcanic terrane, exposed on Black Rock Mountain and in other small areas south and west of Black Rock Mountain; (2) granites, which intrude the metamorphic sequence, and are exposed on the Sweetwater Rocks and areas marginal to Pathfinder Reservoir; and (3) diabase dikes with northeastern trends that intrude both the metamorphic rocks and granites. Exposures of the Precambrian rocks …

The Geohydrology And Hydrogeochemistry Of The Proposed Garrison Lignite Mine, Kevin Morin

Theses and Dissertations

A local groundwater study is a necessity before the opening of any lignite mine in North Dakota. The study becomes an important reference for the environmental impact during mining and after reclamation.

This report is a groundwater study of the Proposed Garrison Lignite Mine, McLean County, North Dakota. The mineable lignite is in the lower Sentinel Butte Formation (Paleocene). The remainder of the Paleocene material at the proposed mine site is mostly fluvial silty clay deposits with some sand beds. Pleistocene deposits, mostly pebble loam (till), cover the Sentinel Butte at the mine site.

Ninety piezometers in twenty-eight nests were …

Geology Of The Flathead Formation (Middle Cambrian) On The Perimeter Of The Bighorn Basin, Beartooth Mountains, And Little Belt Mountains In Wyoming And Montana, Joel A. Degenstein

Theses and Dissertations

The Flathead Formation, which is 4 to 60 metres thick in the middle and northern Rocky Mountains of Wyoming and Montana, contains cross-bedded and parallel-bedded, quartz sandstone. The formation contains marginal-marine and shallow-marine sediment that was deposited unconformably on Precambrian crystalline and sedimentary rock by an eastward-transgressing sea during middle Cambrian time.

This field study of the Flathead Formation on the perimeter of the Bighorn Basin, Beartooth Mountains, and Little Belt Mountains reveals that the formation consists of three intervals. The lower interval contains medium to very coarse, pebbly, cross-bedded sandstone and conglomerate. The middle interval contains medium to coarse, …

Stratigraphy And Depositional Setting Of The Carrington Shale Facies (Mississippian) Of The Williston Basin, Peter F. Bjorlie

Theses and Dissertations

The Carrington shale facies is a radioactive illitic lagoonal shale, apparently deposited behind lime mudstone banks (Waulsortian bioherms), along the eastern margin of the Williston basin during Early Mississippian time.

The Scallion subinterval, which is the basal subunit of the Bottineau interval of the Madison Formation in North Dakota, is divisible into six lithologic facies, one of which is the Carrington shale facies. West of the shale facies, on the basin-shelf hinge line, is the lime mudstone facies. Basinward of this facies is the interbedded shale-limestone facies. Stratigraphically above the latter two facies is the sand-silt-shale facies. Overlying a portion …

Depositional And Paragenetic Controls On Porosity Development, Upper Red River Formation, North Dakota, Kipp W. Carroll

Theses and Dissertations

The upper Red River Formation in North Dakota comprises a subtidal/intertidal facies overlain by three evaporitic sequences of four lithologic units each, labeled "P," "R," and "F" in stratigraphic order. Four porosity zones are recognized in the upper Red River: the subtidal/ intertidal facies forms one porosity zone, and each evaporitic sequence contains another. Each unit in a sequence, as well as the sequence itself, is thinner and less widespread than its preceding counterpart. All strata are laterally continuous across the main part of the Williston basin in North Dakota, but, the porosity zones eventually disappear to the east as …

A Geomagnetic Survey Of Pembina, Grand Forks, And Eastern Walsh Counties, North Dakota, Howard E. Okland

Theses and Dissertations

From August, 1977, to March, 1978, total field geomagnetic readings were taken at 948 sites in the following counties in North Dakota: Pembina County, Grand Forks County, and Walsh County east of 98°W. longitude. The field data was contoured by computer using the SYMAP commercial computer program. Nine major and several minor magnetic anomalies were discovered. Trends present on the aeromagnetic map of Minnesota continue westward into North Dakota. Limited bore hole data and the geomagnetic map suggest that the study area is underlain by Precatnbrian rocks of the Superior geologic province. The northernmost trend may indicate a western extension …

Petrology Of Sandstones From The Bullion Creek And Sentinel Butte Formations (Paleocene), Little Missouri Badlands, North Dakota, Mark A. Steiner

Theses and Dissertations

The mineralogy and petrology of sandstones of the Paleocene Bullion Creek and Sentinel Butte Formations were studied from exposures in the Little Missouri River Badlands in Billings, Golden Valley, and McKenzie Counties, North Dakota. Field work was conducted in the summer of 1977. Stratigraphic sections were measured and described from eight localities. Sandstones were sampled at 47 levels, and three samples were collected from each level. Fifty-one samples were collected from the Bullion Creek Formation and 90 from the Sentinel Butte Formation.

Thin-sections were prepared from plastic grain-mount blocks containing disaggregated sand grains, and 200 points per thin-section were counted, …

The Rhame Bed (Slope Formation, Paleocene), A Silcrete And Deep Weathering Profile, In Southwestern North Dakota, Barbara D. Wehrfritz

Theses and Dissertations

The Rhame Bed is a unit at the top of the Slope Formation (for merly part of the "Ludlow Formation") in the Fort Union Group deposited during Paleocene time.

The Rhame Bed was mapped in western Slope County and north central Bowman County. The bed outcrops on the tops of buttes, at the present groJnd surface in large level areas, or in steep slopes. Although the bed is laterally discontinuous, it is a clearly mappable unit.

The Rhame Bed typically consists of two dominant lithologies: siliceous rock and white sediment. The siliceous rock is hard, gray, and made of silt-sized …

Stratigraphy Of The Lower Tertiary And Upper Cretaceous (?) Continental Strata In The Canyon Range, Juab County, Utah, James M. Stolle

Theses and Dissertations

The Canyon Range Formation (informal new name), formerly mapped as the Indianola Group within the Canyon Range, is divisible into two distinct, mappable units, A and B. Unit A is nearly all conglomerate strata, and conglomerate texture and sedimentary structures suggest an alluvial fan depositional environment. Precambrian and basal Cambrian quartzite clasts represent the erosional debris from the allochthonous Canyon Range thrust. Unit B is composed of interbedded fluvial sandstone and conglomerates with lacustrine limestones, commonly micritic and/or oncolitic. Conglomerate clasts indicate a Paleozoic carbonate provenance. Unit A, previously mapped as the Indianola, underlies Unit B and correlates with the …

Paleoecology Of A Late Quaternary Biota At The Mcclusky Canal Site, Central North Dakota, Linda E. Okland

Theses and Dissertations

Abundant and well-preserved Late Quaternary fossils were exposed at the McClusky Canal Site in the Missouri Coteau district of central North Dakota during the late summer and fall of 1976. Strati graphic units, in ascending order, are: (l) pebbly, clayey sand; (2) unlaminated, organic claystone; (3) laminated, organic claystone; (4) pebbly, sandy claystone; (5) laminated, organic claystone; (6) gypsiferous claystone; and (7) silty claystone. Units 1 and 4 are inter preted to be till, and the remainder are lacustrine sediments. Total thickness of the section is 6.0 m.

Radiocarbon dates of 12,595 ± 375 radiocarbon years B.P. (from the boundary …

Heat Flow And Heat Production Studies In North Dakota, Richard Scattoline

Theses and Dissertations

Thirty-one new heat flow determinations in North Dakota range from 0.6 to 1.9 HFU. The majority of heat flow measurements were completed for southwestern North Dakota.

Heat flow measurements were made in both oil and water wells. Heat production data from basement rocks when used in conjunction with nearby heat flow values indicate that only two of six sites may be considered to be similar to Basin and Range type of heat flow. One site occurs in southwestern North Dakota in a region west of 103° W where no heat flow value is less than 1.5 HFU. The other site …

Stratigraphy And Paleontology Of The Upper Cretaceous Morden Member (Vermilion River Formation) In The Outcrop Area, Northeastern North Dakota, Fredrick D. Wosick

Theses and Dissertations

The Late Cretaceous Morden Member is the oldest exposed bedrock unit in North Dakota, cropping out in eastern Cavalier County in the northeastern part of the state. The Morden overlies the Greenhorn Formation and underlies the Niobrara Formation. The Canadian Morden Member of the Vermilion River Formation is used in lieu of the Carlile Formation because of the lithologic similarity and proximity to the Morden type area, and the distance from the Carlile Formation type section in southeastern Colorado.

Three principal sections were measured and sampled at 2-meter intervals for microfaunal and lithologic analysis. A single well was used for …

Western North Dakota Lignite Strip Mining Processes And Resulting Subsurface Characteristics, Laramie M. Winczewski

Theses and Dissertations

Data on subsurface conditions obtained prior to strip mining is useful in planning effective mining and reclamation procedures as well as predicting the subsurface characteristics after reclamation. The redistribution of the overburden sediments is less predictable, however.

Through field observations, the major mining factors controlling subsurface structure and overburden sediment redistribution were determined. These include the geometry of the coal body, pit sequence, pit curvature, overburden thickness and managerial input. At a given location, however, the detailed structures and distribution of sediment types within a waste bank were observed to depend upon the dragline cutting pattern, distance between dragline positions, …

Glacial Stratigraphy Of Southeastern North Dakota, Michael Camara

Theses and Dissertations

Seven lithostratigraphic units are recognized in the glacial sediment {till) of southeastern North Dakota. Five of these units are not formally named; eventually most of these units will be correlated with formations in surrounding regions. Two of these units, Gardar and Dahlen, are formations recognized in northeastern North Dakota {Hobbs, 1975). The seven lithostratigraphic units are differentiated and correlated using the percentage of the sand, silt, and clay fractions of the till and using the proportion of igneous and metamorphic rock fragments, limestone and dolomite fragments, and shale fragments in the very-coarse-sand fraction (1 to 2 mm) of the till. …

The Late Cenozoic Geology Of West-Central Minnesota From Moorhead To Park Rapids, Roderic L. Perkins

Theses and Dissertations

Based on lithostratigraphic and geomorphic information, the Quaternary history of an area bounded by the Red River of the North, 95°00' west longitude, 47°00' and 46°45' north latitude in west central Minnesota, includes seven geologic episodes:

Glacial advances and retreats over all or part of the study area occurred during the first six geologic episodes. The glaciers advanced either southward across northern Minnesota, entering the study area from the northeast; or across eastern North Dakota and southwestern Manitoba, entering the study area from the northwest. As a result of these glacial events the sediment of Unit A, Sebeka Formation, New …

Petrology Of The Alaskites Of The Boulder Batholith, Montana, Kenneth C. Malick

Theses and Dissertations

The Boulder batholith outcrops in the Northern Rookies of western Montana. It is exposed over an area of 5700 km^2 and extends about 112 km along the continental divide from Mullen Pass on the north to 32 km south of Butte. The Boulder batholith represents an invasion of the upper zones of the crust by a large volume of fluid granodioritic quartz monzonitic magma emplaced at the close of a main orogenic episode during late Cretaceous and Paleocene time.

Eight alaskite bodies were chosen for sampling from previous field experience and from geologic maps published by the U.S.O.S. Textural descriptions, …

Paleozoology Of Cores From The Tyler Formation (Pennsylvanian) In North Dakota, U.S.A., James C. Grenda

Theses and Dissertations

A well-preserved fauna from the Tyler Formation was studied in cores from 34 wells drilled for oil in Billings, Golden Valley, McKenzie, Slope, and Stark Counties. Forty-four species of invertebrates, eleven form-species of conodonts, at least three types of fish, and at least four genera of plants· are present. Invertebrate species include 1 bryozoan, 15 brachiopods, 14 bivalves, 2 gastropods, 2 cephalopods, 2 annelids, 2 branchiopoda, at least 2 ostracodes, 2 malacostracans, 1 insect, and 1 echinoderm. Chordates include 1 "nonmarine" shark, at least 1 paleoniscoid fish, and 1 possible crossopterygian fish. A new genus and species of eocarid malacostracan …

The Glacial Geology Of Mckenzie County, North Dakota, Clark Fulton

Theses and Dissertations

Fourteen lithostratigraphic units composed of windblown, glacial, lake, slopewash, and stream sediment were distinguished in McKenzie County, The units were mapped using aerial photographs, topographic maps, and soil maps combi11ed with field e:xaminations of sediment outcrops. Eight of the units have been formally named and described in earlier studies. Four of them, however, have not been a"~ previously named and formally described .a.nu assigned names in this study. Two other units are described, but because of their limited exposure, are not assigned a formal lithostratlgraphic name. The oldest sediment exposed in the county was deposited during the Paleocene and the …

Foraminiferids Of The Cannonball Formation (Paleocene, Danian) In Western North Dakota, William E. Fenner

Theses and Dissertations

In 1974 and 1975 about 2800 samples (of which 265 contained foraminiferids) of the Cannonball Formation were collected from 60 water test wells and two oil wells in Adams, Bowman, Burleigh, Divide, Dunn, Grant, Mercer, Morton, Oliver, Sioux, and Ward Counties in western North Dakota. Fifty species of benthonic foraminiferids and four species of planktonic foraminiferids were identified including eight textulariines, two milio lines and 44 rotaliines. Taxa reported for the first time from the Can nonball include: Reophax sp. (2 species), Ammobaculites expansus Plummer, Spiroplectammina wilcoxensis Cushman and Ponton, Quinqueloculina plummerae Cushman and Todd, Dentalina eocenica Cushman, Lenticulina alabamensis …

Pleistocene Geology Of The Comstock-Sebeka Area, West-Central Minnesota, Curtis A. Anderson

Theses and Dissertations

This study is a reconnaissance of the surficial geology and a reconstruction of the late Cenozoic history of an area in westcentral Minnesota. The study area extends eastward from the Comstock area (14 miles south of Moorhead, Minnesota) in the Red River Valley to the Sebeka area (13 miles north of Wadena, Minnesota). The area is about 27 kilometres wide and 140 kilometres long.

Surface materials include Pleistocene glacial sediment and Pleistocene and Holocene fluvial, lacustrine, eolian, and bog sediment.

Four geomorphic districts are recognized. The flat Lake-Plain District is underlain by sand, silt, and clay that was deposited as …

Geology Of The Western Portion Of The Dogtooth Pluton, Lake Of The Woods Region, Southwestern Ontario, Richard H. Pilatzke

Theses and Dissertations

A 10 km2 portion of a subsolvus, syntectonic or posttectonic grano dioritic intrusion located about 16 km east of Kenora, Ontario was extensively sampled for study by petrographic modal analysis and trend surface analysis. The Dogtooth pluton, the main intrusive body sampled, is part of a granitic batholith known as the Dryberry dome, which is interpreted to have been intruded into supracrustal volcanic and sedi mentary rocks about 2480 million years ago during the Kenoran Orogeny. The Longbow pluton, which was also sampled, occurs at the west margin of the Dryberry dome in contact with the supracrustal rocks to the …

Use Of Selected Macroinvertebrates As Indicators Of Sedimentation Effects On Huntington River, Utah, Michael Kenneth Reichert

Theses and Dissertations

Benthic macroinvertebrate communities of Huntington River, Emery County, Utah were studied to determine effects of sedimentation from construction of Electric Lake Dam, a state highway, and two bridges. Approximately 900 benthic samples were collected from riffle areas above, in, and below the construction zone from January, 1971 to December, 1973. Two settling basins below construction sites were effective in limiting scouring of downstream communities. Heavy silt deposition was limited to a 1-km stream reach. Number of indicators, density, and biomass were reduced in the construction zone during periods of sediment input. During periods of scouring, density and biomass were reduced; …

Petrology And Geochemistry Of The Killdeer Carbonates, John J. Delimata

Theses and Dissertations

The strata of the proposed Killdeer Formation (Stone, W. J., 1972) in the Killdeer Mountains of Dunn County, North Dakota is composed of a sequence of tuffaceous, calcareous, dolomitized and silicified flat lying sedimentary rocks of Tertiary age. It is the purpose of this report to describe and integrate the petrology and geochemistry of these sediments.

Fieldwork was conducted during the summer of 1972. Forty-three stratigraphic sections were measured and representative samples of each were collected for further analysis. Seven section were selected as representative of the area, and samples from these were studied in thin section with the petrographic …

Late Pleistocene And Holocene Geology Of The Moe Site, New Town, North Dakota, Richard W. Kornbrath

Theses and Dissertations

Eight stratigraphic units of Late Cenoioic age are present around the Moe Archeological Site near New Town, North Dakota. Unit Zero is a layer of glacial sediment consisting of grayish brown pebbly clay loam. Unit One consists of fluvial and beach sand and gravel. Unit Two consists of light yellowish brown, offshore lake silt that was deposited into a glacial lake in Late Wisconsinan time. Unit Three is a layer of glacial sediment consisting of grayish brown pebbly clay loam (Late Wisconsinan). Unit Four consists of fluvial sand and gravel (Late Wisconsinan}. Unit Five is a layer of slough sediment …

Quaternary Geology Of The Southern Part Of The Grand Forks And Bemidji Quadrangles, Donald K. Sackreiter

Theses and Dissertations

Northwestern Minnesota is an area at the southwestern edge of the Canadian Shield that is mantled by thick Pleistocene sediment. The Pleistocene material included a variety of glacial, shoreline, offshore, fluvial, and eolian sediment.

The lithology of the glacial sediment reflects the rock and sediment over which the depositing glacier flowed. Glaciers that advanced from the northeast (Canadian Shield) deposited sandy, granitic-rich material. Glaciers that advanced from the north· (Manitoba Lowland) deposited loamy, calcareous-rich material. Glaciers that advanced from the northwest (eastern North Dakota and southwestern Manitobal deposited clayey, shale-ridt material. A variety of fluvial and lacustrine sediments are typically …

Pleistocene Geology Of The Grand Forks-Bemidji Area, Northwestern Minnesota, Kenneth L. Harris

Theses and Dissertations

This is a report of a reconnaissance study of the Quaternary geology of an area in northwestern Minnesota. Surface geology was studied in an area extending from Grand Forks, North Dakota, in the northwest to Bemidji, Minnesota, in the southeast, an area of 10 723 square kilometres (4140 square miles). Near-surface stratigraphy was studied in the area of surface study and an adjacent area of equal size to the south.

Surface materials mapped range in age from Pleistocene to Holocene and include glacial, glaciofluvial, lacustrine, bog, eolian, and alluvial sediments.

Sixteen power-auger test holes, two measured sections along the Red …

Geology Of The North Beulah, Center, And Glenharold Lignite Mines In Mercer And Oliver Counties, Southwestern North Dakota, Roy E. Kulland

Theses and Dissertations

The geology of the North Beulah, Center, and Glenharold lignite mines in Mercer and Oliver Counties, southwestern North Dakota, were examined. Stratigraphically, all mines lie within the Sentinel Butte Formation. The North Beulah Mine lies 70 m below the top of the Sentinel Butte Formation and the Center and Glenharold Mines lie about 80 m above the base of the Tongue River Formation.

Four sedimentary types are recognized arid common to all mines; these are: silt and clay, silty sand, sand, and lignite. The silt and clay were deposited in floodbasins and shallow lakes occupying the lowest parts of the …