MARYLAND GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 205 



railroads and along the shores of the Northeast and Elk rivers. To 

 the north of this area most of the clays found are of residual origin, 

 that is, they have been formed by the disintegration of the under- 

 lying rocks until the remaining particles forming the soil are so fine 

 that they move over each other readily when mixed with the proper 

 amount of water. Because of the abundance of higher grade clays 

 elsewhere in the county these residual clays have not been worked 

 to any considerable extent except for kaolin. 



The area supporting the most active operations in the manufacture 

 of clay products at the present time is found along either side of the 

 Pennsylvania Railroad from Perryville eastward to the Delaware line. 

 On either side of this railroad are deposits of clay, some of which are 

 suitable for high grade refractory goods, some for ordinary stoneware 

 or terra cotta, and some only for common brick. 



The gradual increase in depth below the surface of the valuable 

 clay beds in passing diagonally across the county from northwest to 

 southeast causes them to be too deeply buried beneath the overlying 

 sands and gravels for profitable working in the southern part of the 

 county except along the waterways. Thus there are no clay pits or 

 clay-working establishments found in the Chesapeake and Cecilton 

 election districts. 



The clays of Elk Neck and the land bordering the estuaries be- 

 tween Northeast river and Perryville may be classified roughly into 

 three main types, those which are suitable for brick and tile and 

 terra cotta; those suitable for stoneware; and those for refractory 

 purposes, such as stove-linings, fire-brick, or saggers. Besides these 

 three uses there are occasional deposits of sufficient purity and bril- 

 liancy of color to make them useful in the manufacture of paints. 



The following discussion of the clay resources of Cecil county will 

 treat in succession the character and distribution of the clays best 

 suited to the manufacture of brick and terra cotta, stoneware, and 

 refractory goods. The deposits under each topic will be grouped 

 according to their relation to transportation facilities by railroad or 

 waterway. 



