xt70p26pzn7b https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt70p26pzn7b/data/mets.xml Yandell, Lunsford P. (Lunsford Pitts), 1805-1878. 1847  books b92-109-27905131 English Prentice and Weissinger, : Louisville : Contact the Special Collections Research Center for information regarding rights and use of this collection. Geology Kentucky.Shumard, B. F. (Benjamin Franklin), 1820-1869. Contributions to the geology of Kentucky  / by Lunsford P. Yandell, M.D., and Benjamin F. Shumard, M.D. text Contributions to the geology of Kentucky  / by Lunsford P. Yandell, M.D., and Benjamin F. Shumard, M.D. 1847 2002 true xt70p26pzn7b section xt70p26pzn7b 








     CONTRIBUTIONS



            TO THE




GEOLOGY OF KENTUCKY





             BY



LUNSFORD P. YANDELL, M. D.
         AND
BENJAMIN F. SHUMARD, M. D.



     LOUISVILLE, KY.
PRE N TICE AND WE ISSINGER
        1847.

 This page in the original text is blank.


 








CONTRIBUTIONS



                          TO THE


       GEOLOGY OF KENTUCKY.




  When we first thought of preparing the following paper,
we proposed limiting our remarks to the Geology of the coun-
try in the immediate neighborhood of the Falls of the Ohio, the
fossils of which wc have been several years engaged in collect-
ing; but having made, some months since, an excursion into the
interior of the State as far as the Grayson Springs, we have
concluded to give to our communication a wider range. Our
researches have been directed especially to the character ana
relative age of our rocks as exhibited in their organic re-
mains, and by the list of these, wAion we shall bte a4be to
present, identical with European species, we hope that we
shall be found to have c3rrtibuted somaethi.i towards estab-
lishing certain important points in geology. The parallelism
of the formations of America and Europs, is a subject which
just now is engaging the attention of some, of the first geologists
of the age. It is interesting, moreover, to compare the forma-
tions of different and distant portions of our own continent.
In order to this, many observations must be recorded. The
field in which we have pursued our inquiries is one of ex-
ceeding interest, and the facts which we are about to com-
municate, as the result of our researches, it is hoped, will
not be without their value in settling some of the great prin
ciples of geological science.

 


4



  In our account of the formations of Kentucky, we shall
commence with the lowest strata and review the systems as
they present themselves in the ascending order.
  On the Indiana side of the Falls of the Ohio, at extreme
low water, the Silurian strata make their appearance, and
for the distance of eight miles in a direction nearly south
form the surface rocks. They are for the most part of a
light greyish color, compact and durable, affording an excel-
lent material for building purposes, for which they are quar-
ried extensively at a number of places in the neighborhood
of Louisville. On Bear-grass creek, a mile to the east of the
city, the lowermost layers of this formation to be seen in
this vicinity, are exposed; and here we find in considerable
abundance a Pentamerus, resembling very closely Hall's
figure in the New York Geological reports. of P. oblongus,
from the Clinton group of New York, and answering well
to the description and figure, in Murchison's Silurian system,
of the same fossil from the upper beds of the Caradoc forma-
tion in England. If our fossil be really identical in species,
of which we entertain no doubt, then the rocks in question
may be referred to the upper portion of the lower Silurian
system; and may be considered as the western representatives
of the Clinton group of New York, and the Carodoc of
England.
  The coraline beds of the Magnesian. limestone of Iowa
and Wisconsin, and also those of Ohio and Indiana, contain
numerous iaternal casts of a Pentamerus, which are proba-
bly referable to this species-, but until more perfect speci-
mens are found it will be difficult to decide with certainty in
regard to their identity.
  Associated with the above we sometimes find a very large
Orthoceratite, the species of which is yet undetermined. Pro-
fessor Cobb has a very perfect specimen which he obtained



'See D. D. Owen's Geological report of Iowa, Wisconsin, and Illinois,
page 78, pl. 14, fig. 40.

 



from these rocks near Utica, Indiana. In length it measures
upwards of two feet. We also saw in Perry county, Ten-
nessee, this multilocular shell of the same length, but here it
was so firmly imbedded in the rocks that it could not be de-
tached.
  We have lately found in these strata on Bear-Grass creek
very perfect specimens of Caryocrinus ornatus, differing from
the New York specimens of this encrinite in being more
elongated, and having the external markings better defined.
In the same connexion we have also found the HIypanthocri-
nites caelatus, of Hall, together with several undetermined spe-
cies of encrinites, as well as the Calymene Blunienbachii.
  Considered in their lithological characters, our Pentamerus
beds correspond more closely with those of New York than
with those of Iowa, Wisconsin, and Ohio, the former being of
a shaly, argillaceous character, while the latter are invaria-
bly magnesian.
  Immediately above these beds occur a series of strata va-
rying from twenty to thirty feet in thickness, remarkable for
the number of fossils, principally Polyparia, contained in them.
Of these the most characteristic is Catenipora escharoides, and
a Cyathophyllum which bears some resemblance to C:. dianthus.
The first is the most abundant coral found here, and is distributed
through all the layers, though the upper ones contain it in the
greatest abundance and perfection. The colal itself is silicious,
while its-matrix is calcareous, in conseqence of which the latter
disintegrates readily,leaving the former beautifully preserved on
the surface of the rocks. The chain-coral seems to have a
wider vertical range than any other fossil found in our forma-
tions. It occurs in the upper Silurian rocks, near Dayton,
Ohio, as on our Falls, and in the glades of Perry county,Tennes-
see, and the  lIagnesian beds of Iowa and Wisconsin. Dr.
Troost, in his geological reports of Tennessee, mentions C.
labyrinthica, which is now considered as merely a variety of
C. escharoides, as occurring at Eddyville, Kentucky, in rocks
which belong to the carboniferous limestone; and Dr. Clapp
has a specimen found as high up as the coal series.
                          1 

 

6



  A number of corals are associated with the above, but for
the want of proper works of reference they have not yet been
satisfactorily determined.  The descriptions and figures of
Sarcinula costata and Stromatopora polymorpha, given by
Goldfuss, correspond very closely with two species from
this locality, and in addition to these, a number of forms be-
longing to the genera Strombodes, Cyathophyllum, Favosites,
Retepora, and Syringapora, are of frequent occurrence. A
few varieties only of shells characterize these strata, of which
two species have been identified; viz: Terebratula Wilsoni,
and T. reticularis. In the glades of Perry county, Tennes-
see, we have also found these shells associated with Pentre-
mites Reinwardti, Caryocrinus ornatus, and Pentamerusgaleatus.
  The foregoing are some of the most characteristic fossils
which have come under our notice in our Silurian rocks, but
future investigations will no doubt bring to light many other
forms with which we are now unacquainted.
  By reference to table I, at the end of this paper, it will be
seen that many of the fossils just mentioned are identical with
species figured by Mr. Hall from the Niagara group of N. York;
and consequently it appears that our strata on Bear-Grass, above
the Pentamerus beds, and the lowermost layers on the Falls,
are the western equivalents of that group. The limestone
of Perry county, Tennessee, containing Caryocrinus ornatus,
Terebrat. Wilsoni, T. reticularis, and Pentremites Reinwardli
may also, on strong palwontological grounds, be referred to
the same geological age.
  Immediately above these rocks a series of strata occur re-
markable for the abundance of their fossils. The beds of
this formation have been divided by Dr. Clapp into 1st, Upper
and Lower Coralline beds; 2d, Middle or Shell beds; and 3d,
Upper or Limestone beds. The Coralline beds rest immediately
upon the above mentioned Silurian strata, and are seen to
the best advantage on the Falls of the Ohio at extreme low
water, at Charlestown landing, on the Ohio river, twelve
miles above Louisville, and in Floyd county, Indiana, eight
miles northeast of New Albany. At these localities Polyparia

 
7



occur in the greatest profusion and perfection, immense beds
being made up almost exclusively of these forms. The lami-
na of the rocks separate easily on the planes of deposition,
so that good specimens of these fossils may be extricated
without much difficulty. The following are some of them:
  Cyathophyllum dianthus(Hall).-The Cyathophyllumn which
Mr. Hall describes as the dianthus is met with in these beds, but
Mr. H. is evidently mistaken in referring it to this species, which
it resembles only in external characters. Its internal structure
is entirely different. Dr. Clapp, who has studied with great
care the corals of the Falls, proposes to call it Cyathophyllum
euglyptum.
  Favosites Gothlandica.-At each of these localities, and in
fact wherever these rocks are exposed, this fossil is found in
abundance, but the point where it occurs in the greatest per-
fection is Goose island, near Louisville, where it is met with
of a snowy whiteness. Dr. Clapp makes a new species of the
coral-F. perplexa-in which two, three, and even four rows of
pores are displayed in the same specimen. F. Gothlandica
has a very wide geographical distribution. In the United
States, it occurs in Tennessee, Missouri, Kentucky, Ohio,
and New York; and in Europe it is found at St. Petersburg,
Eifel, Aymestry, Wenlock, and a number of other localities.
  F. hemispherica.-This fossil, the most characteristic of the
Shell beds, to which it is limited, is abundant on the Falls, and
is found in masses of a hemispherical figure, which vary
from one to ten inches in diameter. It is most commonly
calcareous, though sometimes it is silicious.
  F. maxima. (Troost).-This coral, associated with the
above, also occurs abundantly on the Falls of Ohio. It is
silicious or silico-calcareous. It also occurs in Floyd coun-
ty, Indiana, and in Iowa and Wisconsin.
  F. polymorpha.-The best locality for this coral is Goose
island, where it may be obtained in great quantities, varying
from one line to four inches in diameter, and a foot or more
in length. It is also found in Ohio, New York, Iowa, and
Wisconsin. In Europe it occurs at Ludlow and Esthonia, in
Silurian, while at Eifel, Plymouth, and Paffri that is found in

 

8



Devonian strata. The coralline beds contain also Favosites
spongites, and F. basaltica.
  Astrea rugosa.-A coral, identical in species with one figu-
red by Hall in the New York Geological reports under this
name, is found on the Falls, and at Charlestown landing.
It is also found in Iowa in great masses, where it is com-
monly known as the Iowa marble. (See review of N. York
Geological reports in Silliman's Journal, 2d series, vol. 1, p.
60, fig. 2).
   Syringapora tubiporoides.-This beautiful coral is rare.
The only specimens we have seen were obtained from the
Falls. It is always silicious, and what is extraordinary, is al-
most invariably found incrusting other corals, a very fine
specimen in our possession having for its nucleus the Cysti-
phyllum vesiculosum, and another completely investing a
Cyathophyllum. Three undetermined species of the genus
Syringapora also occur in the coralline beds, which like S.
tubiporoides are generally silicious, and one of which, judg-
ing from the figure in Hall's report (p. 160, pl. 63, fig. 3), is
identical with a species from the Onondaga limestone of New
York. It is of rare occurrence on the Falls, but in Clark
county, Indiana, on Bear-Grass, and in Bullitt county, Ken-
tucky, it is more abundant, occurring at the latter locality in
masses of fifty pounds weight. This is a laminiferous coral,
however, and not properly a Syringapora.
   Cyathophyllum gigas. (Clapp).-This is a very common
and characteristic fossil, abounding at all the localities where
the coralline strata are exposed, and on the Falls, frequently
affording specimens two feet in length. It is both silicious
and calcareous; the septa in the former case are often in-
crusted with perfectly formed crystals of quartz, which give
to the specimens, when broken, an exceedingly beautiful ap-
pearance.
  The following, as well as a number of undetermined spe-
cies of this genus, are associated with the above; viz: C.
punctatum and C. scabrum. Another species is occasionally
met with which closely resembles C. caspitosum of Goldfuss.

 


9



  This is very far from being a full list of the corals yielded
by the beds of which we have been speaking, but the others,
if not undescribed, are at least unknown to western geol-
ogists.
  The species of shells in the coralline beds are not numer-
ous, and for the most part are limited to a single stratum;
one species, however, appears-the Delthyris gregaria of
Clapp, which bears a strong resemblance to the Delthyris
zigzag of Hall, from the Hamilton group of New York. Per-
fect specimens of this shell are not often procured. Associ-
ated with it, several undescribed species of Gasteropoda oc-
cur, one of which, a Turbo, is nearly five inches in diame-
ter. This shell is generally silicifled, and it not unfrequently
happens that the interior is hollow, while the sides of the
cavity are lined with finely formed crystals of quartz. M.
de Verneuil is now engaged in figuring this shell for the Me-
moirs of the Geological Society of France. Besides those
mentioned, our cabinets contain two species of Euomphalus
and one of Murchisonia from the same stratum.
  Immediately above and resting on the coralline beds, we
have the Shell beds of the Falls. These consist of an as-
semblage of strata, the different layers of which vary much
in their lithological characters. Some are of a light greyish
color, compact and sub-crystalline, withstand the action of
the atmosphere without much alteration, and answer well
for building purposes; whilst others disintegrate when ex-
posed for any length of time to the weather. It is above this
point that the water lime, used so extensively as a hydraulic
cement, occurs.
  It is on the Falls that these rocks may be studied to the best
advantage, as the strata are here so plentifully charged with
organic remains, that it is not easy to find a rock, which on
being broken does not yield traces of them. From the Falls
they extend in a north-easterly direction, forming the sur-
face rocks for the distance of more than fourteen miles. On
the road leading from Jeffersonville to Charlestown, Indiana,
there are many fine localities for obtaining organic remains.

 


10



The fossils are silicious, while the rocks are soft, and crumble
down into a reddish brown dust when exposed to the air,
leaving the former exposed on the surface in a good state of
preservation.
   The lowermost layers of this group contain the following
 fossils:-
   Delthyris gregaria.-This fossil, which makes its appear-
 ance in the upper Coralline beds, abounds in the shell strata.
   Spirifer cultrijugatus. (Romer.)-This Spirifer is found in
 the uppermost strata of these beds.
   Pieurorhynchus trigonalis. (Hall).-A shell, which cannot
be distinguished from this species found in the Corniferous
limestone of New York, is common on the Falls, and on the
Charlestown road, seven miles from Jeffersonville, Indiana.
It is calcareous at the former, and silicious at the latter local-
ity. We have occasionally found this shell extending below
into the coralline beds.
  P. alaformis-is associated with the above, on the Falls,
and also occurs on Lewis's creek, Harrison county, Indiana.
In Europe, it is found in the Devonian rocks of Plymouth,
Eifel, and Paffrath.
  Atrypa scitula. (Hall).-We have no hesitation in pro-
nouncing a little species in our cabinets from the Falls, iden-
tical with A. scitula from the Corniferous limestone of N. Y.
  Terebratula reticularis.-This is much the most common of
all the fossils belonging to the shell beds; it has also the
widest vertical range, extending from the base of the cor-
alline beds through the various layers as far up in the series
as the slate beds; nor is it confined to these strata, for we even
find it in the upper Silurian rocks, which we have men-
tioned as occurring on Bear-Grass creek. In New York
it is found in the Corniferous and Hamilton groups; and in
Europe it occurs at St. Petersburg and Gothland, in Silurian
strata, while at Plymouth, Eifel, Paffrath, and a number of
other places, it is contained in Devonian rocks. It is calca-
reous on the Falls, but on the Charlestown road it is silici-
ous, and here the spiral appendage is sometimes found beauti-
ully preserved.

 

I1



  Lucina proavia. (Goldf).-This species is rare on the
Falls, but is more abundant on the Charlestown road. It close-
ly resembles Hall's figure of Paracyclas elliptica, in the New
York Geological reports, from the Corniferous limestone. Our
fossil, however, is double the size of that which is there rep-
resented. It seems to hold the same stratigraphical position
as the New York species, and is associated with the same
fossils.
   Strophomena undulata. (Vanux).-We have found this
shell on Bear-Grass creek, and in Floyd county, Indiana, six
miles from New Albany, in strata belonging to the shell beds.
In New   York it is a Corniferous species.  We are not
aware of its having been obtained from any other locality in
the West.
  Several other species of Strophomena characterize our
shell strata, one of which resembles S. radiata from the
Delthyris shaly limestone in New York. If identical, it
holds in our rocks, as Mr. Hall observes, a much higher posi-
tion than in the New York formations.
  Pileopsis tubifer.-We have in our cabinets specimens of
this shell from the Falls, with spines preserved measuring an
inch in length. It also occurs on Lewis's creek, in Jeffer-
son county, Indiana.
  Calymene crassimarginata. (Hall).-The post abdominal
portion of this trilobite is very common wherever the shell
beds are exposed. The best locality, however, for obtain-
ing good specimens is the Falls. In New York this fossil is
from the Corniferous limestone.
  Odontocephalus selenurus. (Conrad).-This species is as-
sociated with the above, but is a rare fossil in our formations.
At Schoharie and other localities in New York, where the
Corniferous rocks are exposed, it is said to be common. In
the absence of a description and perfect specimens, we were
for a long time in doubt as to the identity of the New York
and western species; but a few weeks since we were so for-
tunate as to obtain an entire specimen, showing the tooth-
Like processes on the buckler, precisely as they are seen in
the figure in Hall's Report. Our trilobite is much larger

 


12



than that figured in the New York Reports, the post abdo-
men of some specimens in our cabinets being nearly four
inches in their greatest diameter. We are not aware of its
having been obtained from any other locality but the Falls.
  Pterinea cardiiformis (Hall).-We are not altogether
certain that our Pterinea from the Falls is the same as that
described by Mr. Hall under the above name, but it closely
resembles the figure in the New York Reports, and holds the
same geological position.
  Acroculia.-Of this shell we find here three species which
are probably undetermined; one variety we have regarded
as identical with the A. erecta of Hall.
  Pentremites Verneuili.-This beautiful fossil, which has been
described by Professor Troost, in the Memoirs of the Geolo-
gical Society of France, is as far as we are informed peculiar
to the western States. It is commonly known as "the petri-
fied hickory nut," to which in general appearance it bears
some resemblance. It occupies the uppermost stratum visible
nearJeffersonville, on the Indiana side of the Falls, and has also
been obtained on Bear-Grass creek one mile and a half from
Louisville, on Silver creek, at Carr's mills, atCharlestown,Indi-
ana, and in the Cliff Limestone near Columbus, Ohio, in
rocks equivalent to our shell beds. We obtained from the
same layer, on Bear-Grass, a Pentremite which differs from
any with which we are acquainted. It resembles more close-
ly than any other a species given to us by M. de Verneuil
from the Carboniferous formations in Yorkshire, England. In
the pentremital stratum are to be seen many stems of Encri-
nites, and we have been so fortunate as to find the bodies of
four species which are probably new. Two of them belong
to the genus Actinocrinites; another, related to a different
genus, measures five inches in diameter.
  The remarkable ganoid Fish figured and described by Drs.
Norwood and Owen, under the name of Macropetalichthys
rapheidolabis, from Lewis's creek, Jefferson county, Indiana,
in Silliman's Journal, (vol. 1st, p. 367, new series), was bro.
ken from a layer which is equivalent to our shell beds. A
short time after our attention was called by this publication

 

13



to the existence of such remains in our formations, we visit-
ed the Falls, in company with Dr. Norwood and M. de Ver-
neuil, and were successful in finding a well preserved scutch-
eon plate of the same species; since which time we have
found fragments of other species of fish associated with it, at
the same locality, and in the same rocks at points remote
from the Falls.
   Of Polyparia we find several varieties in addition to those
which are common to this group and the coralline beds.
They are chiefly reticulated corals, among which the Gorgo-
nia infundibuliformis is of most frequent occurrence, as it is
also considered the most characteristic.  When first split
from the rocks it is of a beautiful white, chalky appearance.
The best locality for obtaining perfect specimens is at the Falls
on the Indiana side, where it may be found in abundance. It
corresponds closely to the figure and description given by
Goldfuss of this species from the Silurian strata of Europe.
If they are identical, the American fossil holds a higher posi-
tion than the European, for it occurs here in strata which
are considered as the equivalent of the Devonian rocks of
Europe. It is proper to remark, that Dr. Clapp has decided
that this fossil is not the Gorgonia infiundibuliformis.
  Immediately above the lower division of the shell beds of
which we have been speaking, we reach the upper strata of
this group, which consist of a number of layers varying in
color from a light blue, to an ashy or greyish tint, and differing
much in compactness. One stratum is composed of an ag-
gregation of black rounded pebbles, held together by a kind
of scoriaceous looking matter, which crumbles readily on ex-
posure to the air, leaving the surface of the strata in some
places covered with these granular bodies. These strata are
scarcely less fossiliferous than the lower division of the shell
beds, for almost every layer yields objects of interest to the
collector. The fossils, however, do not present so great a
diversity of species.
  Resting on the pentremital stratum we have the water
limestone so useful in an economical point of view.
                             2

 


14



   The following are among the most characteristic organic
remains belonging to this group:
   Spirifer ostiolatus. (Schloth).-This shell is one of the
most abundant and characteristic fossils belonging to the
water limestone. The best locality is Corn Island, on the
Kentucky side of the Falls, where it occurs in both a
silicious and calcareous state. The silicified specimens when
broken, often exhibit the spiral appendages beautifully aga-
tized, while the space between these and the shell is filled
with crystallized carbonate of lime, which is easily removed
bv dilute muriatic acid, leaving the delicate spires untouched.
It is also found silicious on the Charlestown road, seven
miles from Jeffersonville, and on Lewis's creek, Jefferson
county, Indiana. In the white Limestones of the Red Ce-
dar and Wapsinonox, in Iowa, it is associated with fossils
similar to those which accompany it in the shell beds of the
Falls. The shell described by Conrad as Delthyris mucro-
nata, from the Hamilton group of New York, is undoubtedly
the S. ostiolatus, for we find that it is associated there with
the same organic forms, and the figures of this shell, with its
varieties, in the New York Reports, would answer equally
well as a description of the western fossil. In Europe it is
found in the Devonian rocks of Eifel, Newton, and at other
localities.
  With this there is another species, which cannot be distin-
guished from that figured by Mr. Hall as Delthyris congesta,
also from the Hamilton group, of Seneca lake shore. Again,
we find Terebratula concentrica, and T. aspera, though of un-
frequent occurrence, both on the Falls and in Floyd county,
Indiana. The former characterizes the Hamilton group of
New York, and the Devonian strata of Eifel, Russia, Spain,
and Belgium; while the latter is found in Gothland and Eifel.
This limestone also yields four undetermined species of Ter-
ebratulae.
  Of the new genus Chonetes, we find one species exceeding-
ly abundant-the C. nana, figured and described in the "G-

 



ologie de la Russie," (vol. 2d, p. 245, pl. xx, fig. 12). This
species is exclusively Devonian, and in Russia occurs on the
shores of the Don, near Voroneje. On the Falls it is mostly
silicious, and in some of the disintegrations on Corn Island
it may be obtained with its delicate spines well preserved.
  Of Pteropoda we have two species. One of these is the Con-
ularia quadrisulcata of Miller. This also occurs at Button-
mould Knob, seven miles south of Louisville, in rocks which
are considered as belonging to the Carboniferous system.
This is an interesting fossil, as it is one among the few found
in Kentucky common to two formations. In New York it
occurs only in the Niagara group. An undetermined species
occurs in the uppermost limestone of the Falls.
   The Calymene macrophthalma, (C. bufo, Green), is quite
characteristic of these upper shell beds, and is to be met
with wherever these strata are exposed. In New York, it
occurs in the Hamilton group; in Iowa, in the white Lime-
stone of Red Cedar and Wapsinonox; in Indiana, it is found
near Charlestown; its foreign localities are Yorkshire and
Eifel. Some of our specimens are calcareous, but many are
silicious.
  Our cabinets also contain several corals from this stratum,
among which we may mention Cystiphyllum vesiculosum, and
Favosites basaltica as most abundant.
  On Corn Island the water Limestone is covered by a sili-
cious crust, which is not more than two inches in thickness.
In this crust we find a small Orthoceratite, two, and some-
times three inches in length, with very thin septa. We
have not been able to detect the position of the syphon. It
is alway s silicious. The Loxonema Hennahiana, a beautiful
spiral shell, is very abundant at this place, and, so far as we
know. this is the only locality in the western States where it
has been obtained. It is figured by Phillips in his Palaeozoic
Fossils, pl. 38, fig. 104. Its foreign localities are South De-
von and Eifel, where it occurs in Devonian rocks. A small
Terebratula and a Turbo, both of undetermined species, are
also found here.

 


16



  Immediately above, and resting on this stratum, we have a
layer of a granular structure, which contains numerous spe-
cies of Encrinites, with a few corals and shells. The heads, or
bodies of the former are also, now and then, obtained, and our
cabinets are enriched by several species from this locality.
One of these belongs to the genus Actinocrinites, and another
is perhaps a Cyathocrinite; whilst a third, which Professor
TroQst is figuring and describing for the Memoirs of the Ge-
ological Society of France, seems to be distinct from any
genus yet published.
  The Slate beds are superimposed upon this Encrinital stra-
tum, and are best seen at New Albany, Indiana. Dr. Clapp
by boring has ascertained their thickness to be one hundred
and four feet at that point. In the excavations for the Louis-
ville and Portland canal, these beds have been cut through,
their thickness on this side of the river being much less than
at New Albany. They form the surface rocks for the dis-
tance of seven miles south by west from Louisville, where
they are overlapped by the fine-grained sandstone of the
Knobs presently to be described. The black slate here, as
well as at other places where these rocks occur, are sparing-
ly fossiliferous, only a few organic forms occurring in them,
and these being confined to one or two of the lowermost
layers of the mass. When newly fractured the slate is of a
jet black color, owing, probably, to the great amount of bi-
tuminous matter which it contains, but after long exposure
to the air it assumes a much lighter shade. Iron pyrites free-
ly disseminated throughout the mass, either in the form of
thin laminae, or in small nodular masses, imparts to the wa-
ter of the Slate district the taste of sulphate of iron. The
only fossils which we have found in this formation are a
small Lingula, and an Orbicula; the former, from the figure
in the New York Geological Reports, is probably L. concen-
trica, (Vanuxem) from the Genessee slate; the latter, 0. Lo.
densis (Vanux.) from the same slate.
  Near White's creek springs, in Tennessee, on Paradise

 

17



Ridge, according to a barometrical measurement made last
summer by Drs. Owen and Norwood, the black slate is 518
feet thick. Near the base of the hill these gentlemen found
a small Lingula, which bears a strong resemblance to L.
spatula, of the Genessee slate.
   It will appear from the preceding observations, and from
an examination of the table of fossils found in the vicinity of
Louisville identical with European species, appended to this
article, that the organic remains of which we have spoken as
occurring in the strata on Bear-Grass creek, and on the Falls
beneath the coralline beds, are decidedly of a lower Palveo-
zoic type. Of twelve determined species therein enumera-
ted as characterizing these rocks, seven forms are common
to the Silurian and Devonian systems of Europe; viz: Tere-
bratula Wilsoni, T. reticularis, Spirifer trapezoidatis, Leptena
depressa, Catenipora escharoides, Stromatopora polymorpha, and
Sarcinula costata; the remaining five species, Spirifer lynx.
Orthis testudinaria, Leptena sericea, Pentamerus oblongus.
and Calymene Blumenbachii are peculiar to the Silurian
rocks. M. de Verneuil spent several days, last summer, in-
vestigating the fossils of this vicinity, and his examination
enabled him to identify a number of forms which in Europe
occur only in Pevonian rocks; from which he was led to
consider the upper beds of the Falls as belonging to that
system, and to conclude that the line of separation between
this system and the Silurian, is about the base of the upper
coralline beds.
  An examination of the tables will show twenty species
from the upper beds of the Falls identical with forms occur-
ring in the Devonian system of Europe. Of these ten are
common to it and the Silurian system; viz: Terebratula reti-
cularis, Spirifer ostiolatus, Calymene bufo, Favosites polymor-
pha, F. basaltica, F.fibrosa, F. Got/landica, F. spongites, Au-
fopora serpens, and A. tubiformis; the remaining ten, viz:-
Spirifer cultrijugatus, Pleurorhynchus alaeformis, Productus
subaculeatus, Chonetes nana, Loxonema Hennahiana, Pileopsis



2

 


18



tubifer, Lucina proavia, Venulites concentricus, Cystiphyllum
vticulosum, and Reptepora prisca, are forms of organisms
purely Devonian.
  Such is the result of the comparison we have made; from
which it appears, that a decided analogy exists between the
fossils of the upper beds of the Falls, and those of the Devo-
nian strata of Europe, and that there are sufficient grounds
for referring them to that geological epoch.
  We may next compare the species contained in the west-
em Silurian and Devonian strata with their representatives
in New York.
  The first table at the end of this article shows thirty-one spe-
cies occurring here, which may be considered as identical with
New York forms.
  Of these it will be seen that the Clinton grou