HELL CREEK BEDS, CERATOPS BEDS AND EQUIVALENTS I95 

 7. RED LODGE, MONTANA. 



The Red Lodge coal field lies along the foot-hills of the Beartooth 

 Mountains, on the extreme south-central border of Montana. 

 The Fort Union beds in this area show the immense thickness of 

 8500 feet, the productive coals being confined to a middle portion 

 only about 825 feet in thickness, below which are barren beds 5700 

 feet thick. According to Mr. E. G. Woodruff^' who reported on 

 the coals of this region in 1908, the 



lowest member is composed mostly of yellowish sandstone and shale. 

 Beginning 1650 feet above the bottom of the formation is a group 

 of beds 1000 feet thick composed of vari-colored sandy shale, with 

 a few beds of soft yellowish sandstone, numerous beds of carbon- 

 aceous shale, and in the upper part a few coal beds. Above this 

 group carbonaceous shale and coal beds occur at diminishing inter- 

 vals as the productive measure is approached. 



The lowest point at which Fort Union plants have been found in 

 the section above described is about 700 feet above its base, and on 

 this account this basal 700 feet has sometimes been referred tenta- 

 tively to the 'Laramie.' In the opinion of the writer it is an insep- 

 arable portion of the lower Fort Union. 



The exact area covered by the lower Fort Union in this vicinity 

 has not been definitely determined, though it is known to extend 

 to the west of Red Lodge for at least 25 miles, where it was found 

 by Mr. W. R. Calvert resting conformably on the Livingston forma- 

 tion, while to the east it extends nearly to Bridger. To the south- 

 east this area undoubtedly connects with the beds of this age exposed 

 as a ring about the margin of the Bighorn Basin, Wyoming. Plants 

 have been obtained in the Red Lodge area at the following locali- 

 ties: 



About 8 miles west of Bridger. Montana. 

 Taxodium occidenlale Newb. 

 Platamis nohilis Newb. 

 riatanus haydcnii Newb. 

 Populus avihlyrhyncha Ward. 

 Sapindiis grandifolioliis Ward. 

 Laurus sp. ? 

 Ficus sp. 



" Bull. U. S. Geol. Surv., 341A, igo8, p. 92. 

 Proc. Wash. Acad. Sci., August, 1909. 



