Classification and Correlation of the Pleistocene Deposits of Cape Cod and the New England Islands 



(Oldest formation at bottom, youngest at top) 



Stage 



1 Origin 



1 Name, location, and distinctive features 



Name applied to deposits on New England 

 Islands and Cape Cod 



Mississippi Valley classification 

 adopted by U. S. Geological Survey 



WlSCONBIN 



Glacial 



Falmouth 'or "inner" moraine ( = Charlestown moraine 

 of R. I. and Harbor Hill moraine of Long Island) 



Falmouth moraine 



Plymouth interlobate 

 moraine 



Wisconsin stage (glacial) 





Nantucket or "outer" moraine ( = Ronkonkoma moraine 

 of Long Island) 



Nantucket moraine 



VlNEYARD 



Interglacial 



Characterized principally by erosion on Block Island, 

 Marthas Vineyard, Nantucket and Cape Cod, but 

 accompanied by some marine deposits, and locally, on 

 Marthas Vineyard, by some beds of peat 



Vineyard formation 



Peorian stage (interglacial) 

 Iowan stage (glacial) 

 Sangamon stage (interglacial) 



Manhasset 



Glacial 



Hempstead gravel 



Manhasset formation 



Hempstead gravel member 







Montauk till. Long Island to Marthas Vineyard 



Illinoian stage (glacial) 





Montauk till member 





Herod gravel 





Jacob 



Transitional 



Sand, transitional, closing the episode of submergence 



Jacob sand 





Gardiners 



Interglacial 



Episode of submergence, characterized by stratified 

 marine blue clay of glacial origin 



Gardiners clay 



Yarmouth stage (interglacial) 



Jameco 



Glacial 



Moshup boulder clay and certain stony blue clays of 

 till-like texture at Nashaquitsa cliffs and No Man's 

 Land; contemporaneous with at least upper part of 

 typical Jameco gravel 



Jameco 

 formation 



Moshup till member 







Coarse gravel of typical Jameco type 



Kansas stage (glacial) 





Coarse gravel, the chief deposit beneath the Gardiners 

 clay; of typical Jameco type 





Ferruginous boulder bed 







The ferruginous boulder bed on Gay Head and its 

 probable equivalent on Block Island at Clay Head. 





Post-Mannetto 



Interglacial 



Characterized by deep erosion on Long Island; correlated 

 with the erosion interval on Marthas Vineyard and 

 Block Island, where there is a sharp unconformity be- 

 tween lower folded early Pleistocene, Tertiary, and 

 Cretaceous deposits and what appears to be base of 

 Jameco gravel 



(Not accompanied by deposits) 



Aftonian stage (interglacial) 



Mannetto 



Glacial 



Traces of glacial outwash gravel on Long Island ascribed 

 by Fuller to an ice invasion. The strong folding at this 

 time at Clay Head on Block Island and at Gay Head 

 on Marthas Vineyard is attributed to thrust by the ice 

 sheet advancing upon the coastal plain deposits. To 

 deposition by this ice is thought to be due the stony 

 blue clay till at Gay Head (an ice-laid till without 

 boulders) and the overlying gravel bed 



Mannetto formation 







Interval of glacial re- 

 cession and marine 

 invasion. 



Glacial sand and gravel on Marthas Vineyard and Block 

 Island (Weyquosque formation) and contemporaneous 

 marine sand of Nantucket and Cape Cod (Sankaty 

 sand) 



Weyquosque 

 formation 

 (glacial sand 

 and gravel) 



Sankaty sand (marine sand) 



Nebraskan stage (glacial) 





Glacial. Possibly first 

 advance of Man- 

 netto stage. 



Scattered boulder deposits of glacial origin; at Gay Head 

 at base of Pleistocene section; boulder-bearing gravels, 

 etc.; all known deposits reworked by water. Deposits 

 largely beneath sea level except at Gay Head cliffs, 

 Clay Head, and possibly a few other localities 



Dukes boulder bed 



(Probably equivalent to Jerseyan drift of 

 New Jersey) 





Non-glacial 



Preglacial conglomerate bed at Gay Head cliffs, com- 

 posed of quartz and chert pebbles, with fossil bones of 

 Miocene Cetacea, a Pliocene camel, and a Pleistocene 

 horse; probably an old stream gravel 



Aquinnah conglomerate 



(No known correlative) 



Unconformable on Cretaceous and Miocene. 



