Elk. Area, 770 square miles; population in1880, 12,800.
This region, lying 2000 feet above the sea, and still largely a wilderness,
is traversed by four extremely gentle, but broad and irregular, anticlinal
rock-waves and by four coal basins: (1) That of Caledonia and Benezette,
along Bennett’s branch of the Susquehanna; (2) that of Shawmut, Brockport,
Early (Daguscahonda,) Centreville, and St. Mary’s, along the Little
Toby and Elk Creek; (3) that of Lake City, Ridgway, Mount Moren, Wilmarth,
Bridgetown, Wilcox, Pistner Hill, and Upland, crossing the Clarion
River, and extending up Bear Creek, Big Mill Creek, Little Mill Creek,
and Clarion Creek; and (4) that of Spring Creek, Summit, and Highland,
along the divide from which the head waters of the Tionesta flow westward
into Forest County. The highest lands along the middle line of the
second of these basins in Horton, Fox, and Benzinger townships are
capped by the Mahoning sandstone and a little of the Barren measures.
The body of the hills consists of flat productive coal measures (250`
thick) containing among the limestones the Ferriferous limestone,
but without its "buhrstone" iron ore covering. The valleys are cut
down through an additional 300 feet of the Conglomerate measures (XII,)
so that the underlying Mauch Chunk red shale (XI) has an enormous
length of outcrop all over the county, as the red line on the map
will show. Of course, the lower slopes of the bluff walls of the valleys
are made by horizontal outcrops of Pocono greenish, false-bedded,
and fine-grained sandstone (X,) the bottom of which is nowhere reached,
except at one point on the north fork of the West Creek, 4 miles north
of Hemlock station, on the P. & E. R.R., and in the beds of the
valleys of Benezette township as they approach the Cameron County
line, and cut down into the upper strata of the Catskill formation
No. IX. The remarkable flatness of the stratification keeps the Conglomerate
belts very narrow, and gives an uncommon width to the areas of the
lower coal beds, which must occupy fully one half of the whole surface
of the county. The highest (Freeport) coal bed, on the other hand,
and for the same reason, has been preserved only in spots on the highest
lands. The average outspread of coal, taking the whole 250 feet of
productive coal measures into account, must be equal to about 200
square miles. Beds of carbonate of iron and beds of fire-clay are
the only other minerals of value in the region, the former being always
unreliable. This was the last retreat of the elk. In 1841, a herd
of thirteen individuals still existed in the forest, but they were
soon after that exterminated. The Ridgway well (1709` A.T.) went through
85` of Olean conglomerate and sandstone (XII); slate 15`; coal;
Mauch Chunk red shale (XI) 45`; Pocono sands and shales
(X) 625`; then almost a continuous series of Catskill red shales
and sands (IX) 334`; and 96` into Chemung shales (VIII). - The St.
Mary’s well (1605`) commences with Drift 32`, and Olean sand
(XII) 18`, and goes through (XI and X) "blue slate" 45`, sand 25`,
slate 140`, sand 16`, slate 124`, sand 20`, slate 205` (total 575`,)
then through continuous red Catskill (IX) 335`; then blue slate 12`,
sand 49`, slate 369`, red rock 25`, slate 35`, reddish rock
and the rest blue slate 220`, sand 44`, black slate and shells of
sandstone with a few red streaks 286`, and ended in sand 10` (total
of VIII 1050`); total depth of well 2010`, to 405 feet below ocean
level.
From: A geological hand atlas of the sixty-seven
counties of Pennsylvania :embodying the results of the field work
of the survey, from 1874 to 1884. By J. P. Lesley. (Report of
progress (Geological Survey of Pennsylvania), v. X ) Harrisburg, PA
: Board of commissioners for the second geological survey, 1885.
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