Fossil tracks.

Economic. materials

Lake Superior region.

of Frontenac, Leeds, Lanark and Carleton, and is well exposed in the townShips to the north-east of Kingston and in many places between the Thousand islands and the Ottawa river. Its total thickness in this part of the province has not been ascertained, and it is variously estimated at from 300 to 700 feet. Fossils are not abundant in these rocks, and shells of the genus Lingula are perhaps the most characteristic. Large trilobites are occasionally met with, and at Perth certain remarkable tracks, supposed to have been made by these animals when the present hard rock was in the state of soft sand, have been found on the surface of one of the beds. Tracks left by creatures of a similar kind were found by the late Mr. Robert Abraham in 1847 in beds of the Potsdam sandstone near Beauharnois, in the province of Quebec. In the sandstones near Perth the late Dr. Wilson, nearly thirty years ago, found a number of long cylindrical casts like tree trunks from six inches to one foot in diamater. Last year attention was called to certain cylindrical bodies of larger size than the above which pass almost at right angles through the sandstone beds of this formation near the Rideau canal about eight miles from Kingston. The only economic materials furnished by the Potsdam formation consist of sandstones for building and glass-making. They are all too hard for grindstones or scythe-stones. The parliament buildings at Ottawa are constructed of Potsdam sandstone from the adjoining township.

In the lake Superior region the sandstones of Sault Ste. Marie, the peninsula between Goulais and Batchawana bays, Isle Parisienne, etc., seem to be of Potsdam age. They are mostly red, with green spots thickly sprinkled over the bed-planes, and interstratified with greyish layers. Unlike the Nipigon formation, they appear to be free from local disturbances and lie almost flat. Although they resemble some of the sandstones of Mamainse in being red, they are believed to be newer and are probably unconformable to them.

THE SILURIAN SYSTEM.

This system was named by Sir Roderick Murchison after the Silures, a people who inhabited a part of ancient Britain in the border land between England and Wales. It is one of the most important systems in the geological scale, occurring in nearly all quarters of the globe, and is remarkable for the Silurian system. uniform character of its fauna in widely separated countries. It is almost

Extent and

character of the

everywhere rich in fossils, which consist principally of the remains of marine invertebrate animals and marine plants, although fishes and some land plants make their appearance in the upper part of the system. These rocks were formerly divided by some geologists into a Lower and an Upper Silurian series. The former is now often called the Ordivician, thus restricting the term Silurian to the upper division. For the present, however, we will retain the name Silurian for the whole system. The Silurian rocks appear to have been deposited during a generally quiet period of the earth's history. They embrace every variety of sediments, and occasionally include some igneous intrusions and beds of volcanic origin. They are divided into a number of formations, and the total volume of the system is very great in most regions. The thickness of each of the formations in Ontario will be given separately.

formation.

The name of these rocks is derived from their lime-bearing character. The formation is not important in Ontario, and is found principally between Locality of the Brockville and Ottawa. It has a thickness of about 300 feet and consists for the most part of a bluish grey magnesian limestone, which has a gritty feel like sandstone, especially on weathered surfaces. The Ramsay lead vein near Carleton Place cuts this formation.

CHAZY FORMATION.

distribution.

This formation derives its name from a town in Clinton county, in the state of New York. It is not an important formation in Ontario, and is Geographical found principally in the valley of the Ottawa below Pembroke, and between this river and the St. Lawrence below Prescott. Two outliers occur in the county of Renfrew, one on the Bonnechere and the other on the Madawaska river. It consists of greyish limestones, sandstones and shales, and has a thickness of about 150 feet. Some of the Chazy limestones are very suitable for building, and in certain localities the sandstones are also used for this purpose, but they are generally rather too thinly bedded.

names.

distribution.

The formations known under the above names in the state of New York are not regarded in Canada as differing sufficiently, either palæontologically origion of the or lithologically, to require separation. The Black River formation derives its name from a stream which enters the eastern extremity of lake Ontario in the state of New York, while the term Birds-eye has reference to the appearance of a fossil contained in the rocks bearing this name. The united formations have in Ontario a thickness of 150 to 200 feet, and consist of bluish and dark grey bituminous limestones with interstratified grey shales. Geographical It occurs on some of the islands in the north channel of lake Huron between the Manitoulin group and the north shore. Further east it skirts the southern edge of the Laurentian area from Penetanguishene to Kingston, and it is found in patches in the Ottawa valley above the city of the same name, and as a border surrounding the Trenton basin between the Ottawa and St. Lawrence further east. It is well developed around Kingston, and the build- Economics. ing stone of the Limestone City is derived from it. Part of the stone used at Ottawa and Cornwall are quarried from this formation. The lithographic stones of the Marmora and Madoc region also belong to it.

TRENTON FORMATION.

Geographical

This important set of rocks is named from Trenton in the state of New York. On lake Huron it is found on Lacloche island and about Little distribution. Current in the northern part of Grand Manitoulin island. It occupies a broad belt between Georgian bay and lake Ontario, extending from Matchedash bay to Collingwood harbor on the former and from Newcastle to Amherst island on the latter. Lake Simcoe is situated entirely on this formation, and the whole of the peninsula of Prince Edward is underlaid by it. There is a Trenton outlier in the county of Carleton and it forms the uppermost rock in a geological basin, occupying the whole width of the country

between the St. Lawrence and Ottawa east of Ottawa city. The higher parts It underlies the of the limestone cliffs at the capital belong to this formation. Judging

western

peninsula.

Petroleum and natural gas.

Cincinnati anticlinal.

from the results of borings which have been made in various localities, as well as from its general regularity and persistence, the formation is supposed to extend at a moderate but increasing depth south-westerly under the whole of the peninsula between lake Huron on the one side and lakes Erie and Ontario on the other. It has also been shown by borings in Ohio to underlie the newer rocks over a large part of that state. In Ontario it has probably a

total thickness of about 600 feet and consists of fossiliferous bituminous limestones, usually dark grey in color, interstratified in some parts with shales which are also often bituminous. It affords excellent building stones in almost every part of its distribution, and it is important as a source of petroleum and natural gas. The oil and gas of the comparatively new field in north-western Ohio are derived from these rocks. The writer has shown that the Cincinnati anticlinal, along which these products have accumulated, continues northward and crosses the western part of the Ontario peninsula, following a line from near Little's point on lake Erie to near Kettle point on lake Huron.* By an inspection of the map it will be seen that Kingsville, where a valuable gas well has been recently struck, is situated on this line. Both the petroleum and gas of this formation have probably originated from the decomposition of the remains of marine vegetation, of which there is abundant evidence in these rocks. The most Where to bore promising places for boring for either oil or gas would appear to be on the lines of the principal anticlinals, but only where the formation is well covered by impervious strata which have had the effect of confining these products for ages. Surface indications may be entirely wanting.

Kingsville gas well.

for gas.

Geographical distribution.

Shale oil.

UTICA FORMATION.

Although this formation is only about 100 feet thick in Ontario it is easily recognised, consisting everywhere of a black bituminous shale. The name is derived from the town of Utica, in the state of New York. It occurs on the northern points of Grand Manitoulin island and on the south side of Clapperton island. It is well seen to the west of Collingwood harbor, and runs thence south-eastward through the country, coming out on lake Ontario between Whitby and Newcastle. The Utica shales are sufficiently bituminous to burn with flame for a short time when thrown upon a hot fire. In October, 1859, works were erected a short distance west of Collingwood for distilling illuminating oil from these shales, which were found to yield from 3 to 4 per cent. of their weight of tarry oil at a cost of 14 cents per gallon. Owing to the discoveries of free petroleum the following year, this enterprise was abandoned. Illuminating oil is, however, still made at a profit from bituminous shale in Scotland.

"The main axis of the anticlinal will intersect the north shore of lake Erie in the vicinity of Little's point in the county of Essex; then running about north-north-east through Essex, Bothwell and Lambton, it will reach the southern shore of lake Huron near Kettle point. Its general bearing from lake Erie to lake Huron is about north thirty degrees east, but it appears to curve gently to the south-east of a straight line and to pass under Petrolia." Transactions of the Royal Society of Canada for 1887, page 107.

HUDSON RIVER FORMATION.*

This formation, named after the Hudson river in the state of New York,

the

has a thickness in Ontario of about 700 feet and consists of bluish drab marls, Nature of clays and shales, interbedded with layers of limestone and sandstone. It is met with along the northern part of Manitoulin island and on the south-western On lakes Huron side of Georgian bay, and it extends thence south-eastward through the country, widening as it goes, to lake Ontario, on which it occupies the shore from Port Credit to Pickering. An outlier of the formation, eighteen miles

and Ontario.

Ottawa.

in length, occurs in the counties of Carleton and Russell a short distance Outlier near south-east of the city of Ottawa. The Hudson river formation has furnished

no economic minerals of importance in Ontario. The greater part of these rocks were at one time called the Lorraine shales, but that name is now abandoned.

MEDINA FORMATION.

Red marls.

The Medina formation is named after Medina in the state of New York. It consists of red with some green marls and a fine grained light grey and sometimes reddish sandstone, called the grey band at the top. In the west Grey band. the formation first appears near Colpoy's bay, on the south-west side of Georgian bay, and increases to the southward. It has acquired a thickness of about 200 feet in the eastern part of the county of Grey. Continuing thence southward

it crosses the country, the thickness still increasing, till it strikes lake Ontario, On lake Ontario. where it amounts to about 600 feet. Its lower or eastern side comes out upon the lake near Port Credit, and the formation continues thence westward doubling around the head of the lake at Dundas, from which it runs along its southern shore eastward to the Niagara river and crosses into the state of New York. The sandstone at the top of the formation is an excellent building stone, and it is also used for grindstones and scythe stones. This band begins in the township of Nottawasaga, and is found all along the course of the formation to lake Ontario. Some beds of a brownish pink color occurring Forks of Credit. at the Forks of the Credit are highly esteemed as building stones.

CLINTON FORMATION.

mation.

This is named from Clinton county in New York state, and consists in Ontario of greenish and drab grey shales and thinly bedded siliceous and Nature of forargillaceous limestones of similar colors, amounting to from 80 to 180 feet in thickness, together with a very ferruginous red band which, near Rochester, is called the "iron-ore bed," where it is said to have been used at one time as an ore of iron. The Clinton formation runs lengthwise through the centre of Distribution. Manitoulin island, along the south-west side of Georgian bay, and thence southward to the head of lake Ontario, from which it strikes eastward along the base of "the mountain" and crosses the Niagara river. In the county of Grey the "iron-ore bed" is bright red and chalky or marly, but near lake Ontario Iron-ore bed. it has become harder and more shaly, and contains a somewhat larger percentage of iron.

NIAGARA FORMATION.

This is one of the best marked of the fossiliferous formations of Ontario. It runs through all the Manitoulin group of islands, the Indian peninsula

* The name of this formation should appear in the table of Divisions of the Rocks of Ontario on p. 2, between the Utica and Medina formations.

Thickness.

Nature of formation.

The Niagara escarpment.

and the Niagara peninsula, crosses the Niagara river and ends in Herkimer county in New York. It appears to attain its maximum thickness on Grand 'Manitoulin island, where the writer estimated it at 450 feet. At Owen Sound it is about 400 and at Hamilton 240 feet. It thus diminishes towards the south and east, while the underlying formations increase in these directions. Except along the Niagara river, where the lower 80 feet consist of bluish black shale, the formation is made up of dolomite or magnesian limestone. Northward of lake Ontario it becomes thickly bedded, of an open crystalline texture and a light grey color, but in the Niagara peninsula it is of a darker shade, closer texture and is more thinly bedded.

Blue mountains.

Niagara Falls.

On lake Temiscaming.

Near James bay.

distribution.

The Niagara formation is remarkable for the prominent escarpment which marks the lower or eastern boundary in all parts of its distribution. It is a conspicuous feature all along the sinuous course of the base of the formation to the south-west of Georgian bay, and forms the upper part of the Blue mountains in the townships of Collingwood and Osprey, which have an elevation, according to levels taken by the writer, of upwards of 1,200 feet over lake Huron, or about 1,800 feet above the sea. This is higher than the average altitude of the watershed between the great lakes and Hudson bay. From the Blue mountains the escarpment follows a general southerly course to the head of lake Ontario, and from thence it forms the crest of "the mountain" as far as Queenston. The gorge of the Niagara river, into which the falls pour their waters, cuts through the formation, the upper or limestone part amounting to 164 feet in thickness, and the above mentioned shale at the bottom to 80 feet. The Niagara limestone everywhere in western Ontario affords an excellent building stone, and it also burns to good lime.

At the head of lake Temiscaming, which is situated at the great bend of the Ottawa river, there is a large outlier of this formation consisting of from 300 to 500 feet of grey limestones, with arenaceous beds and coarse or boulder conglomerates at the base.

In the northern part of the province, west of James bay, we meet with almost horizontal grey and yellowish-grey limestones, containing fossils, which, according to the late Mr. E. Billings, the celebrated palæontologist, belong to the Niagara formation. These strata occur along the Albany river above its junction with the Kenogami, and also along the latter stream as far up as the first portage. The limestones are overlaid by a considerable thickness of chocolate-colored marls with greenish layers and patches, but without observed fossils.

GUELPH FORMATION.

This formation, which occurs only in Ontario, was named at the suggestion of the writer after the town of Guelph, which is situated upon it. Its Thickness and greatest thickness, about 160 feet, is attained in the central part of the western peninsula, from which it diminishes both south-eastward and northwestward, terminating about the Niagara river in the one direction and on the south side of the Manitoulin island in the other. Throughout the greater part of its distribution it consists of a light buff or cream-colored dolomite of a finely crystalline or granular texture, resembling sandstone, but in the Niagara peninsula it becomes dark grey and bituminous, and more distinctly