Search

Mississippian stratigraphic problems of the southern Appalachians pertain to: (1) refinement in stratigraphic subdivision; (2) establishment of lateral relationships from one place to another, especially between disconnected areas and areas of independent previous study; (3) correlation of the southern Appalachian strata with the better-known units of the standard section; (4) establishment of the manner and time of origin of some of the units; and (5) establishment of the Mississippian-Pennsylvanian boundary. Examples of major problems which need further study are discussed. Solution of many of the stratigraphic problems must await careful and detailed field studies and, particularly in several instances, a consideration of the faunas.

Montlake is a large, spectacular sinkhole, walled with massive sandstone, located on the Cumberland Plateau, near Chattanooga, Tennessee. It is virtually unknown and is remarkably different from the common types of sinkholes. In spite of its situation 800 feet above limestone beds, it is thought to have originated by collapse of hundreds of feet of strata into a large cavern. Description and preliminary treatment of the theory of origin are here offered.

Recently discovered stylolites in quartzite, associated with thin films of coal, reveal significant evidence bearing upon the theory of origin. The relationships between the stylolite-seams with the coal partings and the sedimentary structures of the bedrock give conclusive support to the solution (secondary) theory of origin, as opposed by the pressure (primary) theory.