South-central Kentucky Research Articles

The Silicified Evaporite Syndrome--Two Aspects of Silicification History of Former Evaporite Nodules from Southern Kentucky and Northern Tennessee

ABSTRACT Silicified evaporite nodules from Mississippian rocks of south-central Kentucky and adjoining Tennessee typify in many respects silicified evaporite nodules which have been reported in rocks of widely differing ages and diagenetic histories. The silicified evaporite syndrome is an assemblage of characteristics shared by evaporite-replacement quartz nodules and includes both mineralogical and textural aspects. The sequence of textures in most nodules begins with interlocking quartzine spherules near the outer nodule edge and ends with a mosaic of equant megaquartz in the nodule center. Proportions of the different textures vary considerably between nodules. Anhydrite inclusions are abundant in the centers of megaquartz crystals. Megaquartz in the nodules is characterized by strongly un ulose, radial extinction. Euhedral terminations often have a cubic appearance. Many nodules contain crusts of zebraic chalcedony on the euhedral megaquartz bordering internal cavities. Oxygen isotope analyses are useful in understanding the silicification history. Microcrystalline quartz and fibrous quartz types have O18 values which are heavier than those of megaquartz. The microcrystalline quartz nodules, associated with the silicified evaporites, formed earliest in fluids related to sea water. Length-slow fibrous quartz types formed later in water of intermediate composition. Megaquartz developed at somewhat higher temperatures and in fluids derived from meteoric water. Zebraic chalcedony in the nodules is also of meteoric origin. All silicification of these samples has probably occurred at temperatures of less than 40° C.

Environmental Influence on Cell and Wood Characters of Liquidambar styraciflua L.

Cell length differences between populations of sweetgum from the United States and Central America were confirmed in growth chamber studies; fiber tracheid lengths were inversely proportional to latitude of origin. Examinations of cell length differences of populations from south central Kentucky showed similar trends with a pattern of decreased cell length being evident in seedlings grown under lower test temperatures. The effects of temperature and photoperiod on wood specific gravity were assayed, emphasizing seedling progeny from Kentucky. Decreasing day and night temperatures resulted in increased specific gravity of secondary tissues. Longer days and warm temperatures may affect cell length and cellulose deposition, two characters significant in wood quality. The inherent response of local populations to environmental controls may prove to be valuable management tools in selection of desired wood characters.

Age and Tectonics of Cincinnati Arch in South-Central Kentucky: ABSTRACT

Age and Tectonics of Cincinnati Arch in South-Central Kentucky: ABSTRACT

Role of Vertical Shafts in the Movement of Ground Water in Carbonate Aquifers

ABSTRACTVertical shafts are roughly cylindrical voids in carbonate rocks. They range in diameter from inches to tens of feet and in height from inches to hundreds of feet. They are produced by vertically descending ground water from perched ground‐water reservoirs or surface water. These features are common throughout the Interior Lowlands and Appalachian Plateaus Provinces. Vertical shafts form the headwater termini of complex drainage networks that aggregate the waters into master drains which carry the water to big springs. The drains evolve through time as base level is lowered but retain a dendritic pattern. Shafts are very short lived and occur only near the edge of the clastic caprock in the study area in south central Kentucky. Shafts are formed by free flowing sheets or films of vadose water streaming down the walls in supercritical flow. These waters are undersaturated with respect to calcite at both top and bottom of the shaft, although there is a measurable uptake of CaCO3 as the water traverses the shaft walls. The shafts act as aeration chambers, and there is much loss of carbon dioxide from the ground water during movement through this segment of the underground route.

Knifley Sandstone: Early Mississippian Infralittoral Sandstone Body: ABSTRACT

Stratigraphic and petrologic relationships indicate that the Knifley Sandstone was the product of littoral to infralittoral processes, which deposited sands at the shoaling inner margins of a shallow, Early Mississippian sea. The Knifley Sandstone is an elongate body, 30 mi long, 5 mi wide and up to 200 ft thick, within the Ft. Payne (=Borden) Formation (Lower Mississippian) of south-central Kentucky. This sandstone body trends northwest-southeast, parallel with the regional depositional strike. It is offlapped to the southwest by 2 elongate limestone bodies of similar dimension and orientation. The thick widespread Ft. Payne (=Borden) Formation consists of bioturbated, siliceous dolosiltites. The Knifley Sandstone is a coarsening-upward sequence of fine- to medium-grained, glauconitic, dolomitic, subgraywackes, which grade downward into the underlying Ft. Payne (=Borden) dolosiltites. Extensive bioturbation End_Page 344------------------------------ has destroyed most primary bedding features except the southwest-dipping master bedding. Dielectric anisotropy data indicate long-grain axis orientations toward the southwest, perpendicular to the length of the sandstone body and regional depositional strike. The 2 parallel limestone bodies consist almost entirely of coarse, well-sorted bryozoan-crinoidal biosparites. These limestones contain a minor percentage of terrigenous quartz; silicification of skeletal fossil debris is common. Directional properties in the 2 limestone bodies indicate a southwesterly transport direction. The coarsening-upward sequence of highly bioturbated sandstone with an increase in carbonate downdip indicates a littoral to infralittoral barrier separating a gently shallowing sea on the southwest from its shoreline on the northeast. End_of_Article - Last_Page 345------------

Clure and Joe Williams: Legend and Blues Ballad

THIS PAPER DEALS with the value of a local ballad in a study of folk culture and with local history in a process of formation. That the ballad of the Williams family did not attain wider circulation is not our present concern, although it will be obvious that the ballad and legend are only subtypes in American balladry and legendry. Our study amply supports Herbert Halpert's contention that the local folksong is often the most important song in a community., We further emphasize that the investigation of the background of a local ballad may be of prime importance to an understanding of a folk culture. But the investigation must be a direct one: of all our collectanea, only one item was volunteered in answer to a request for old songs. The locale of this ballad is south-central Kentucky and north-central Tennessee, on both sides of the Cumberland River, which in the past made of the neighboring counties a culture area. Most of the area lies outside of what is officially classified as Southern Appalachia, but the culture is, in our judgment, predominantly Appalachian. Until recently it was a land of small farms and of restricted communication with urban, industrial culture. Thirty years ago there was scarcely a paved road in the area, and rail lines still reach only to Glasgow, in neighboring Barren County. The lifeline was the Cumberland River, stretching from Burnside in eastern Kentucky to Nashville, Tennessee. Folk memory, or tradition, reaches back to the eighteenth century in tales claiming a local site in Monroe County as the first settlement in Kentucky. There is a tale and alleged proof-though informants are reluctant to furnish all details-that Abraham Lincoln was actually born in Monroe County and in circumstances befitting an epic hero. Some citizens speak as if it were yesterday of Joe Coleman, the only white man hanged in Cumberland County, whose execution in 1847 left in its wake a number of legends and a song.2 This is Cordell Hull country. The career of the late Secretary of State, who was

Karst Depression Morphology in South Central Kentucky

Karst depression morphology was analysed with respect to elements of lithology, structure, and relative location in the erosion system in a part of South Central Kentucky. Depression morphology was...

Karst Depression Morphology in South Central Kentucky

Karst Depression Morphology in South Central Kentucky

SOME ASPECTS OF LINEAR KARST DEPRESSION DEVELOPMENT IN SOUTH CENTRAL KENTUCKY

ABSTRACT This investigation attempts to analyze the spatial patterns of karst depression elongation and orientation relative to structural trends in a part of south central Kentucky. Depression elongation is defined by the ratio of the long axis of the depression to its short axis. Depression orientation is measured by the azimuth of the long axis in relation to the azimuth of an associated line of structural fracture. From these data the percentage of structurally aligned depressions was determined. The percentage of structurally aligned depressions was found to be highest where the following conditions prevailed: 1) in areas where limestones were characterized by low insoluble residue contents; 2) in areas where hydraulic gradients were high, as indicated by the existence of high karst relief ratios; 3) in areas where a high proportion of the surface runoff was concentrated in the subterranean drainage systems; and 4) in areas, which were located near the mouth of the subterranean drainage system. (Loca...

Organic composition of Kentucky's New Albany Shale: Determination and uses

Elemental composition of total organic matter in composite samples representing the complete thickness of Devonian New Albany Shale at three sites in south-central Kentucky was determined. The method used overcame analytical problems generated by copious occurrence of pyrite and marcasite in the black shale. Average composition in weight-percent organic matter was C = 82.0%, H = 7.4%, N = 2.3%, S = 2.0% and O = 6.3%; these are the first complete and accurate organic composition data available for the black shales. Uses of these data are illustrated. Hydrogen content is significantly higher than in coals, but lower than in Green River Formation organic matter. No significant difference in organic composition was detected, although sampled locations spanned 60 miles across the Cincinnati Arch. Organic content of the formation ranged up to 22 million tons sq. mile, offering a tremendous fuel potential. On thermal treatment about one-third of the organic matter converted to oil.

Developments in East-Central States in 1965

Total oil production in Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, and Tennessee during 1965 was 94.5 million bbls., a decline of 7.0% from 1964. Exploratory wells drilled in the four states totaled 1,077, a decrease of 145 wells or 12%. Gas production, essentially all from Kentucky, increased from 76 Bcf. in 1964 to 82.7 Bcf. Although the bulk of the oil production and the major exploratory effort were still concentrated in the Illinois basin, more attention was attracted by shallow discoveries on the Cincinnati arch in south-central Kentucky near the Tennessee line, on the south flank of the Michigan basin in northwestern Indiana, and in the Appalachian basin in eastern Kentucky. In Tennessee, 20 tests were drilled in 1965, 5 less than in 1964. They included a field discovery, a pool discovery, an extension, a successful development well, and 16 exploratory failures. Tennessee oil production was about 10,000 bbls. and gas production was about 85 MMcf. Oil production in Kentucky decreased slightly from 19.8 million bbls. in 1964 to 19.4 million bbls. in 1965. Gas production in eastern Kentucky remained approximately constant, but production in western Kentucky increased due to development of the Midland field into a major gas source. Of 437 exploratory tests in Kentucky, 54 (12.4%) were successful. Significant reserves of both oil and gas were discovered in Mississippian reservoirs along the southern margin of the Illinois basin in western Kentucky, but the release of mineral deposits underlying Camp Breckinridge will add greater reserves. A Lower Ordovician Knox discovery led to a drilling program in Clay and Laurel Counties, eastern Kentucky, which developed further reserves in Middle Ordovician reservoirs. A spectacular discovery in Upper Ordovician rocks at extremely shallow depths on the Cincinnati arch in central Kentucky near the Tennessee border had resulted in much leasing and drilling activity by the end of the year. Oil production in Indiana increased slightly, from 11.3 million bbls. in 1964 to 11.5 million bbls. There were 285 exploratory tests drilled in Indiana, 12 less than in 1964. Most of the 5 new fields, 18 new pools, and 6 extensions were in Mississippian strata in southwestern Indiana, the Illinois basin section of the state. Discovery of a small field in Devonian strata at a depth of less than 300 ft. on the southern margin of the Michigan basin was instrumental in opening a large area in extreme northern Indiana for further exploration. Oil production in Illinois declined 9.0% in 1965 to 63.6 million bbls. Oil and gas drilling declined 21%, from 1,577 tests in 1964 to 1,245 in 1965. Of 337 new exploratory tests, 24 successful tests were responsible for the discovery of 9 new fields, 2 new pools, and 13 extensions. A 13,051-ft. test to the Precambrian in the deep part of the Illinois basin found no oil below the Mississippian. At the end of the year many depleted wells were being deepened a short distance from the Ste. Genevieve Limestone to dolomite reservoirs in the next underlying formation, the St. Louis Limestone.

Oil and Gas Developments in Kentucky in 1959

Total oil production reached another new all-time high with a record-breaking 27,271,956 bbls., one-third of which was produced in Green and Taylor counties. The interest in shallow Silurian-Devonian production brought a big increase in drilling in south-central Kentucky. Shallow Mississippian production in Metcalfe County, an extremely shallow Devonian discovery in Lincoln County, and new Ordovician discoveries in Clinton and Cumberland counties raised the total of wells drilled in the state to a new all-time high. Gas production showed a very slight decline to 68,938,376 MCF. United Fuel Gas Company's deep tests in Martin, Carter, and Bell counties, and other scattered deep tests throughout the state demonstrated the continued interest in Knox and other Cambro-Ordovicia reservoirs.

A Distributional Study of Pseudacris nigrita in Kentucky

The swamp chorus frog, Pseudacris nigrita Le Conte, has long been known to occur in Kentucky. Due perhaps in part to the paucity of specimens from the state, the population has been considered P. n. triseriata by numerous authors, among them Garman (1894), Dury and Williams (1933), Burt (1933), Wright and Wright (1946), and Barbour (1950). Wright and Wright (op. cit.) indicated that the species is absent from central Kentucky, and Smith and Smith (1952) concurred in this opinion. Largely during the past five years, a series of 328 specimens of P. nigrita has been collected from Kentucky, and is deposited in the zoological collections of the University of Kentucky. Locality data of these specimens, plus numerous voice records of the author leave no doubt that Pseudacris nigrita is abundant in Kentucky south and west of a line from about Louisville south and east around the Knobs into the mountains about Berea, thence southeast through Pineville. The species is absent from the Bluegrass area, and from the greater portion of the mountains of eastern Kentucky (fig. 1). A related species P. brachypbona Cope, occurs throughout the mountains of eastern Kentucky, and overlaps the range of P. nigrita in portions of south-central Kentucky. This species, P. brachyphcona, will be treated in a subsequent paper. Examination of the specimens in the collections of the University of Kentucky, and a series of 57 specimens borrowed from the University of Louis-

A RURAL SHIGA DYSENTERY EPIDEMIC

The county in which the epidemic discussed in this paper occurred is located in south central Kentucky. It covers an area of 400 square miles and is hilly, the soil being red clay to sandy with limestone rock formation. The total population, according to the 1940 U. S. Census, is 18,566, with 1,372 of this number living in the county seat, located about the center of the county. Approximately eight to nine families per square mile reside in the rural areas. Only about 6 per cent of the total population is Negro, about one third residing just outside the corporate limits of the county seat, while the other two thirds reside in scattered homes throughout the county. The county seat has a filtered and chlorinated water supply drawn from nearby Russell Creek. Approximately 80 per cent of the homes in the town are connected to a sewage system which carries

"Carolina Bays" and Elliptical Lake Basins

Previous articleNext article No Access"Carolina Bays" and Elliptical Lake BasinsWilliam F. ProutyWilliam F. Prouty Search for more articles by this author PDFPDF PLUS Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail SectionsMoreDetailsFiguresReferencesCited by The Journal of Geology Volume 43, Number 2Feb. - Mar., 1935 Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1086/624288 Views: 3Total views on this site Citations: 9Citations are reported from Crossref PDF download Crossref reports the following articles citing this article:Sam Upchurch, Thomas M. Scott, Michael C. Alfieri, Beth Fratesi, Thomas L. Dobecki Caves and Sinkholes in Florida, (Sep 2018): 267–358.https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69635-5_7Nathan Howell, Alexander Krings, Richard Braham Guide to the littoral zone vascular flora of Carolina bay lakes (U.S.A.), Biodiversity Data Journal 4 (Apr 2016): e7964–1.https://doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.4.e7964 Cover, Editorial, Letter to the Editor, Earth Sciences History 18, no.22 (Jan 1999): 155–158.https://doi.org/10.17704/eshi.18.2.v30n53v641q4t58hPLACIDO LAVALLE SOME ASPECTS OF LINEAR KARST DEPRESSION DEVELOPMENT IN SOUTH CENTRAL KENTUCKY, Annals of the Association of American Geographers 57, no.11 (Mar 1967): 49–71.https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8306.1967.tb00590.x C. C. Reeves Jr. Pluvial Lake Basins of West Texas, The Journal of Geology 74, no.33 (Sep 2015): 269–291.https://doi.org/10.1086/627163William F. Prouty A Reply to an Article by Mr. Brandon Barringer on the Origin of the “Carolina Bays”*, Contributions of the Meteoritical Society 4, no.1414 (Jun 2012): 151–153.https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1945-5100.1948.tb00068.xGerald R. MacCarthy, H. W. Straley Magnetic Anomalies Near Wilmington, N. C., Science 85, no.22062206 (Apr 1937): 362–364.https://doi.org/10.1126/science.85.2206.362D. Johnson ORIGIN OF THE SUPPOSED METEORITE SCARS OF CAROLINA, Science 84, no.21662166 (Jul 1936): 15–18.https://doi.org/10.1126/science.84.2166.15E. W. Eickelberg Need for more detailed magnetic observations shown by increasing application of results, Transactions, American Geophysical Union 16, no.11 (Jan 1935): 168.https://doi.org/10.1029/TR016i001p00168

Age of the black shale in south-central Kentucky

Age of the black shale in south-central Kentucky