ashley.]  COAL    IN    NICHOLAS    QUADRANGLE,    W.    VA.  423 
siderable  interest.  In  the  last  few  years  a  number  of  companies 
having  large  holdings  within  this  quadrangle  have  been  doing  active 
prospecting  work  which  was  of  the  greatest  assistance  in  determining 
the  resources  of  the  quadrangle. 
Topography. — The  surface  of  this  quadrangle  consists  mainly  of 
very  narrow  V-shaped  valleys,  500  to  1,000  feet  deep,  separated  by 
rather  broad,  rounded,  fairly  even  divides.  The  farms  are  mainly 
on  the  divides  or  on  a  broad  shelf  lying  on  the  north  side  of  Gauley 
River.  The  streams  are  rapid  and  are  actively  cutting  downward. 
Along  these  streams  and  all  around  the  edges  of  the  broad  hilltops 
the  harder  sandstones  make  frequent  cliffs.  The  coals  outcrop  along 
the  slopes  of  the  hills,  and  in  the  majority  of  cases  will  be  reached  by 
drifts  from  which  inclines  will  carry  the  coal  to  the  valley  bottoms; 
thence  it  will  be  sent  out  by  switches  built  up  the  streams.  Most 
of  the  quadrangle  drains  to  Gauley  River,  and  on  account  of  the  dip 
the  coal  of  the  area  south  of  the  Gauley  should  be  attacked  from  the 
northwest,  preferably  up  Hominy  Creek  or  some  of  its  branches. 
The  drainage  of  Elk  River  in  the  north  edge  of  the  quadrangle  has 
cut  to  a  much  lower  level  than  the  drainage  of  the  Gauley,  and  most 
of  the  coal  north  of  the  Gauley  should  be  attacked  from  the  Elk 
River  side. 
Stratigraphy. — The  rocks  of  this  quadrangle  are  confined  almost 
entirely  to  rocks  of  Pottsville  and  Allegheny  ages,  the  Pottsville 
here  being  considered  to  extend  upward  to  and  including  the  black 
flint.  From  the  economic  standpoint  the  rocks  can  be  divided  into 
those  found  in  the  New  River  coal  field  and  those  of  the  Kanawha 
coal  field.  Those  of  the  New  River  coal  field,  beginning  at  the  bot- 
tom, consist  of:  First,  a  series  of  sandstones  and  shales,  which  have 
a  thickness  of  several  hundred  feet  in  the  southwest  part  of  the 
quadrangle.  This  group  of  rocks  contains  the  coal  known  as  the 
"  Quinnimont"  or  "  Firecreek  "  coal  of  the  New  River  field,  and  also 
the  Beckley  coal,  which  is  an  important  coal  in  Raleigh  County. 
Above  these  appears  the  well-known  Raleigh  sandstone,  a  massive 
sandstone,  often  conglomeratic,  having  a  thickness  of  from  50  to 
100  feet  or  more.  This  has  been  traced  clear  across  the  southern 
part  of  the  quadrangle.  Then  comes  the  group  of  sandstones  and 
shales,  in  which  occurs  the  Sewell  or  Nuttall  coal.  At  the  top  of 
this  group  is  the  well-known  Nuttall  sandstone  that  makes  the  great 
cliffs  at  Nuttallburg,  on  New  River,  and  along  much  of  Gauley  River. 
Above  the  Nuttall  sandstone  occurs  the  Kanawha  formation,  com- 
posed of  sandstones  and  shales,  some  of  the  sandstones  being  promi- 
nent. It  has  a  thickness  of  700  to  1,000  feel  and  contains  all  but 
the  uppermost  of  the  coals  mined  along  Kanawha  River.  The  black 
flint  forms  the  top  of  the  Kanawha  formation.     Still  above  that  are 
