PREFACE 



This report contains a discussion of the physiography and geology of the 

 Coastal Plain province of Virginia. All of the formations here represented 

 are found in adjacent states either to the north or to the south. The Vir- 

 ginia region is classic ground for the student of Atlantic Coast Tertiary 

 geology, while the Cretaceous deposits are also well known. There are few 

 portions of the Coastal Plain that have received more attention, although 

 the greater portion of the work done in Virginia dates from an early 

 period when individual sections were studied and their fossil contents 

 collected and discussed. Little was done at that time toward delimiting 

 either the formational units or their areal di-tribution, while the broader 

 physiographic problems were quite untouched. The present investigation 

 has endeavored to cover these larger problems. The work has been carried 

 on in conjunction with similar studies in Maryland and North Carolina. 



The first chapter, entitled Physio graphy of the Virginia Coastal Plain, 

 deals with the surface features of the district, which consist mainly of a 

 series of dissected terraces formed during late Tertiary and Quarternary 

 times. The similarity of this region to the adjoining areas in Maryland 

 and North Carolina is clearly shown. 



The second chapter, entitled Geology of the Virginia Coastal Plain, com- 

 prises an exhaustive study of the character and distribution of the forma- 

 tions of eastern Virginia. This investigation began nearly twenty years ago, 

 when the senior author of this report started his study of the geology and 

 paleontology of the regions bordering the main drainage lines of the district. 

 Excursions covering longer or shorter intervals were made yearly from that 

 time forward. In later years the junior author of this report has spent much 

 time in the field mapping the limits of the several formations, and in 

 making still further paleontological collections. As the result of the 

 prolonged investigation to which the district has been subjected, the 

 authors of this report are able to present much in the way of detailed results. 



The authors have been materially aided in the study of the Lower 

 Cretaceous formations by Mr, E. W. Berry, of the Johns Hopkins University, 

 who has spent much time in the field studying the detailed stratigraphy 

 of these formations, and in collecting the fossil plants, a thorough revision 

 at the same time being made of the specific determinations of his prede- 

 cessors. Mr. Berry is the author of the section on the Lower Cretaceous. 

 Dr. M. W. Twitchell, of South Carolina University, did much valuable work 

 as an assistant in the study of the Miocene formations in several of the 

 southern counties of the State. Miss Julia A. Gardner, of the Johns 

 Hopkins University, has devoted much of her time for the past two years 

 to a study of the Miocene faunas, more especially to the mollusca, which 



