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Bedrock geologic map of the Springfield 7.5- x 15-minute quadrangle, Windsor County, Vermont, and Sullivan County, New Hampshire

Gregory J. Walsh·Peter M. Valley·Thomas R. Armstrong·Nicholas M. Ratcliffe·Arthur J. Merschat·Beau J. Gentry
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Abstract

The bedrock geology of the 7.5- by 15-minute Springfield quadrangle consists of highly deformed and metamorphosed Mesoproterozoic through Devonian metasedimentary and meta-igneous rocks. In the west, Mesoproterozoic gneisses of the Mount Holly Complex are the oldest rocks and form the eastern side of the Chester dome. The Moretown slice structurally overlies the Chester dome along the Keyes Mountain thrust fault which represents the Ordovician Taconic suture (Red Indian Line) between Laurentian and Ganderian crust. The allochthonous Cambrian through Ordovician Moretown slice includes the Moretown and Cram Hill Formations and the North River Igneous Suite. Silurian and Devonian metasedimentary and metavolcanic rocks of the Connecticut Valley trough (CVT) unconformably overlie the Moretown slice. Ordovician to Silurian and Devonian metasedimentary and meta-igneous rocks of the New Hampshire sequence structurally overlie the CVT along the Devonian, Acadian Monroe thrust fault. The oldest part of the New Hampshire sequence consists of Ordovician metamorphosed volcanic, plutonic, and sedimentary rocks of the Bronson Hill arc including the Ammonoosuc Volcanics, the Partridge Formation, and the Oliverian Plutonic Suite. The Ammonoosuc Volcanics are the base of the exposed arc section in the map area. The Bronson Hill arc rocks are exposed in fault-bounded structural belts, including the Monroe thrust sheet, the Claremont belt, the Sugar River and Unity domes, and the footwall of the Brennan Hill thrust fault. Silurian to Devonian metasedimentary rocks of the Clough Quartzite, and Fitch and Littleton Formations unconformably overlie the Bronson Hill arc rocks. Devonian granitic and pegmatitic dikes and sills of the New Hampshire Plutonic Suite intruded previously deformed rocks. Devonian, Acadian F 1 fold nappes have a sheath fold geometry and are truncated by multiple generations of faults. The Bronson Hill arc structurally overlies the CVT along the Acadian Monroe fault with preserved tectonic mélange in the footwall. Upright dome-stage F 2 folds post-date amphibolite facies metamorphism and locally developed into sheath folds in high-strain zones. F 3 folds exhibit sinistral rotation associated with Alleghanian lower-greenschist facies faults. Late Paleozoic Alleghanian to Mesozoic shear zones transpose stratigraphy, early structures, and peak metamorphic isograds. 40 Ar/ 39 Ar white-mica growth ages (300–250 million years before present [Ma]) indicate that retrograde deformation continued into the latest Paleozoic and earliest Mesozoic. Apatite fission track data show that brittle faults were active prior to about 100 Ma and experienced Late Cretaceous and even Paleocene re-activation. The bedrock geology was mapped to study the tectonic history of the area and to provide a framework for ongoing characterization of the bedrock of Vermont and New Hampshire. This Scientific Investigations Map of the Springfield 7.5- x 15-minute quadrangle consists of sheets 1 and 2 as well as a geographic information system (GIS) database that includes bedrock geologic units, faults, outcrops, and structural geologic information. Sheet 1 of the report includes a bedrock geologic map, a correlation of map units, and a description of map units. Sheet 2 includes a discussion of the geology, references cited, two cross sections from the geologic map on sheet 1, a tectonic map showing major structural features, and a structural domain map showing the orientation of brittle features.

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Scientific Investigations MapReport
90° N90° S · 180° W ← longitude → 180° E
Source-reported bounding extent: 43.25° to 43.375° latitude; -72.5° to -72.25° longitude. This indicates report coverage, not an exact sampling location. View area on OpenStreetMap.

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Gregory J. Walsh, Peter M. Valley, Thomas R. Armstrong, Nicholas M. Ratcliffe, Arthur J. Merschat, Beau J. Gentry. 2020-12-22. Bedrock geologic map of the Springfield 7.5- x 15-minute quadrangle, Windsor County, Vermont, and Sullivan County, New Hampshire. https://doi.org/10.3133/sim3462

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