Lithostratigraphic Glossary
Arnheim - In its original sense, consisted of "Sunset" and Oregonia Members, representing deep subtidal and shallow subtidal facies of the C4 sequence. Overlies the Mount Auburn Formation, and is overlain by Waynesville Formation. Used in traditional system in Ohio, Indiana, and northern Kentucky.
Ashlock - Formation originated for use during the Kentucky geological mapping program. Used in south-central Kentucky, and includes the following members in ascending order: Tate (C2 peritidal), Gilbert (C3 lagoonal), Stingy Creek (C3 shallow subtidal), Terrill (C3 peritidal), Sunset (C4 lagoonal), Reba (C4 shallow subtidal). Many of these members are thin, so the Ashlock Formation is convenient for mapping these as a single unit, but not very useful for paleoenvironmental or sequence stratigraphic interpretation. The Ashlock overlies the Calloway Creek Formation and is overlain by the Drakes Formation.
Bellevue - Used for shallow subtidal facies of the C2 sequence. Overlies the Fairmount Member of the Fairview Formation and is overlain by the Corryville Formation. Originally part of the McMillan Formation. Used in traditional and Tobin systems in Ohio, Indiana, and northern Kentucky.
Blanchester - Used for offshore facies of the C5 sequence. Overlies Clarksville Member of Waynesville Formation and is overlain by Liberty Formation. Used in traditional system in Ohio and Indiana, but was not redefined on lithologic grounds by Tobin.
Bull Fork - Used in Ohio and northern Kentucky to encompass all of the strata above the Grant Lake Formation and below the Drakes Formation. As such, it includes at least the C3, C4, and C5 sequences, and the offshore, deep subtidal, and shallow subtidal facies. Where offshore and shallow subtidal facies are mapped separately, as Lee (1974) did when he mapped tongues of the Waynesville and Whitewater Formations interfingering with the Bull Fork, the Bull Fork comprises primarily (though not exclusively) deep subtidal facies.
Calloway Creek - Used in central Kentucky, where it includes deep subtidal and shallow subtidal facies of the C2 sequence. The deep subtidal facies are equivalent lithologically to the Fairview Formation, and the shallow subtidal facies are equivalent to the Bellevue Formation. Overlies the Garrard Siltstone and is overlain by the Tate Member of the Ashlock Formation.
Clarksville - Used for offshore facies of the C5 sequence. Overlies Fort Ancient Member of Waynesville Formation and is overlain by Blanchester Member of Waynesville Formation. Used in traditional system in Ohio and Indiana, but not lithologically redefined by Tobin.
Clays Ferry - Used in central Kentucky for the deep subtidal facies of the C1 sequence, the depositionally updip equivalent to the offshore Kope facies. The offshore and deep subtidal facies of the C1 sequence are cyclic at the 20-m scale, causing the two to intertongue in northern Kentucky. Although the Kope and Clays Ferry are commonly distinguished by vertical cutoff, some of the southernmost Kope contains deep subtidal facies, and some of the northernmost Clays Ferry contains offshore facies. Tongues of the Clays Ferry, which may or may not be continuous with the main body of the Clays Ferry, are mapped within the Lexington Limestone and would therefore represent deep subtidal facies of the M6 sequence. The main body of the Clays Ferry overlies the Lexington Limestone and is overlain by the Garrard Siltstone.
Corryville - Used for deep subtidal facies of the C3 sequence. Overlies the Bellevue Formation and is overlain by the Mount Auburn Formation. Originally part of the McMillan Formation. Used in traditional and Tobin systems in Ohio, Indiana, and northern Kentucky.
Dillsboro - Used in Indiana for all strata between the Kope and the Saluda, and thereby spans the C2 through C5 sequences, and includes shallow subtidal, deep subtidal, and offshore facies. This is a vast unit that offers little in the way of stratigraphic or paleoenvironmental resolution, but is useful for mapping at a coarse stratigraphic scale or in areas of limited exposure.
Drakes - A unit used in Ohio and Kentucky to represent generally unfossiliferous or poorly fossiliferous facies in the uppermost type Cincinnatian. In Ohio and parts of Kentucky, the Drakes consists of red terrigenous mudstones, probably peritidal in origin and belonging to the C6 sequence (Preachersville Member). In central Kentucky, the Drakes also includes dolomitic peritidal facies of the C4 sequence (Rowland Member), fossiliferous, commonly coral-bearing shallow subtidal strata of the C5 sequence (Bardstown Member), the distinctive gastopod coquinas of the C5 sequence (Marble Hill Member), and the dolomitic peritidal facies of the C5 sequence (Saluda). In general, the facies relationships of the uppermost type Cincinnatian are the most poorly known in the entire Cincinnatian. In central Kentucky, the Drakes overlies the Ashlock Formation; in northern Kentucky and Ohio, the Drakes overlies the Bull Fork Formation.
Economy - Lowest member of Latonia Shale, in traditional system of Ohio, Indiana, and northern Kentucky. Overlies the Point Pleasant Limestone and is overlain by the Southgate Member of the Latonia Shale. Includes offshore facies of C1 sequence. Basal portion of Economy is known as the Fulton Beds.
Elkhorn - Used in the traditional system in Indiana and Ohio. Includes deep subtidal facies of the C6 sequence. Overlies the Upper Member of the Whitewater Formation and is overlain by Silurian strata.
Fairmount - Upper member of the Fairview Formation in the traditional system in Ohio, Indiana, and northern Kentucky. Overlies the Mount Hope Member of the Fairview Formation and overlain by the Bellevue Member of the McMillan Formation. Includes deep subtidal facies of the C2 sequence.
Fairview - Lies above the Latonia Formation and below the Bellevue Member of the McMillan Formation in the traditional system in Ohio, Indiana, and northern Kentucky. Includes deep subtidal facies of the C2 sequence.
Flanagan - Term applied to cherty beds at the top of what is now known as the Grier Member of the Lexington Limestone.
Fort Ancient - Used for offshore facies of the C5 sequence. Overlies Oregonia Member of Arnheim Formation and is overlain by Clarksville Member of Waynesville Formation. Used in traditional system of Ohio and Indiana, but not lithologically redefined by Tobin.
Fulton - Basal portion of Economy Member of Latonia Shale, in traditional system in Ohio, Indiana, and northern Kentucky. Overlies the Point Pleasant Limestone and is overlain by the remainder of the Economy Member. Includes offshore facies of C1 sequence.
Garrard - Used in central Kentucky for an unusual terrigenous silt-rich peritidal facies that may represent the C2 lowstand systems tract. Overlies the Clays Ferry Formation and is overlain by the Calloway Creek Formation.
Gilbert - Used in south-central Kentucky for lagoonal facies of the C3 sequence. Second to lowest member of the Ashlock Formation; underlain by the Tate Member and overlain by the Stingy Creek Member.
Grand Avenue - A limestone-rich tongue in the upper Kope in northernmost Kentucky and southern Ohio. Forms the cap of a 20-m cycle.
Grant Lake - Used in Ohio and Kentucky for dominantly shallow subtidal and some deep subtidal strata of the C2 through C4 sequences. As such, the Grant Lake is similar to the McMillan and Arnheim Formations of the traditional system. To the south and east of Cincinnati, strata were deposited in shallower water depths. Consequently, many of the deep subtidal strata pass into shallow subtidal strata and the cyclicity that helps to define the lithostratigraphy at Cincinnati becomes obscure. In these updip areas, the Grant Lake is a useful term when finer stratigraphic precision is difficult. Overlies the Fairview Formation and is overlain by the Bull Fork Formation.
Hitz - The Hitz Limestone Bed is a portion of the Saluda Member of the Drakes Formation in southernmost Indiana and northern Kentucky. The Hitz is a micritic molluscan-rich limestone that lies immediately above the laminated dolomitic peritidal strata of the Saluda. The Hitz represents lagoonal strata of the C6 sequence. Northward, these lagoonal strata thicken and are known as the Saluda, as at the outcrops near Brookville.
Kope - Used for the thick sequence of shale-rich strata at the base of the Cincinnatian Series. Nearly equivalent to the old Latonia or Eden shales of the traditional system, although the top of the Kope is placed several meters below the traditional top of the Latonia. Used in the U.S.G.S./Kentucky Survey, Ohio Survey, and Indiana Survey systems, as well as in Tobin's revision to the traditional system. Includes offshore facies of the C1 sequence.
Latonia - Basal formation of the type Cincinnatian Series in traditional system in Ohio, Indiana, and northern Kentucky. Composed of Fulton, Economy, Southgate, and McMicken Members. Overlies the Point Pleasant Limestone and overlies the Mount Hope Member of the Fairview Formation. Includes offshore facies of the C1 sequence.
Liberty - Used for deep subtidal facies of the C5 sequence. Overlies Blanchester Member of Waynesville Formation and underlies Lower Whitewater Formation. Used in traditional/Tobin system in Ohio, Indiana, and northern Kentucky.
Marble Hill - Used for a several meter thick gastropodal coquina and crinoidal grainstone unit that crops out in a several square mile area near Bedford, Kentucky. One body of the Marble Hill overlies the Bull Fork Formation and is overlain by the Rowland Member of the Drakes. A second body overlies the Rowland Member of the Drakes and is overlain by the Bardstown Member of the Drakes.
McMicken - Uppermost member of Latonia Shale, in traditional system, in which it overlies the Southgate Member of the Latonia Shale and is overlain by the Mount Hope Member of the Fairview Formation. Includes offshore facies of C1 sequence.
McMillan - Lies above the Fairview Formation and below the Arnheim Formation in the traditional system in Ohio, Indiana, and northern Kentucky. Composed of the Bellevue, Corryville, and Mount Auburn Members. Includes deep subtidal and shallow subtidal facies of the C2 and C3 sequences.
Miamitown - Used in Ohio for a shale-rich tongue near the top of the Fairview or base of the Bellevue. Tongue thins to the southeast and thickens to the northwest.
Mount Auburn - Used for shallow subtidal facies of the C3 sequence. Overlies the Corryville Formation and is overlain by the "Sunset" Formation. Originally part of the McMillan Formation. Used in traditional and Tobin systems of Ohio, Indiana, and northern Kentucky.
Mount Hope - Basal member of the Fairview Formation in the traditional system in Ohio, Indiana, and northern Kentucky. Overlies the McMicken Member of the Latonia Formation and overlain by the Fairmount Member of the Fairview Formation. Includes deep subtidal facies of the C2 sequence.
North Bend - Tongue of Fairview Formation that extends into the upper Kope Formation near Cincinnati, Ohio and pinching out to the northwest. The North Bend Tongue is also known as the non-cyclic interval of the basal Fairview, owing to its lack of meter-scale cyclicity. Recognized only where it is overlain by the Wesselman Tongue of the Kope Formation.
Oregonia - Used for shallow subtidal facies of the C4 sequence. Overlies Sunset Member of the Arnheim Formation and is overlain by Fort Ancient Member of Waynesville Formation. Used in traditional and Tobin systems in Ohio, Indiana, and northern Kentucky.
Preachersville - Used in central Kentucky for peritidal facies of the C5 and possibly C6 sequences. Uppermost member of the Drakes Formation. Overlies the Rowland Member of the Drakes and is overlain by Silurian strata.
Reba - Used in central Kentucky for shallow subtidal facies of the C4 sequences, and is therefore equivalent to the Oregonia Member of the Arnheim Formation of the traditional system. Uppermost member of the Ashlock Formation. Overlies the Sunset Member of the Ashlock and is overlain the Rowland Member of the Drakes Formation.
Rowland - Used in central and northern Kentucky for peritidal facies of the C4 sequence. Basal member of the Drakes Formation. In central Kentucky, overlies the Reba Member of the Ashlock Formation and overlain by the Preachersville Member of the Drakes. In northern Kentucky, overlies the Bull Fork Formation and is usually overlain by the Bardstown Member of the Drakes Formation.
Saluda - Used for a massively bedded interval of relatively pure limestone and dolomite, commonly containing tabulate and favositid corals. Includes peritidal facies of the C5 sequence (as at Madison, Indiana) and lagoonal facies of the C6 sequence (as at Brookville, Indiana). Used in traditional, Indiana Survey, Ohio Survey, and Kentucky Survey systems. In Kentucky, the Saluda is mapped as a member of the Drakes Formation, but is treated as a formation in Ohio and Indiana. In Kentucky, overlies the Bardstown Member of the Drakes and is overlain by Silurian strata. In Indiana, the Saluda overlies the Dillsboro Formation and is overlain by the Whitewater Formation. In Ohio, the Saluda Formation is a tongue into the Whitewater Formation.
Southgate - Middle Member of Latonia Shale, in traditional system of Ohio, Indiana, and northern Kentucky. Overlies the Economy Member of the Latonia and is overlain by the McMicken Member of the Latonia. Includes offshore facies of C1 sequence.
Stingy Creek - Used in central Kentucky for shallow subtidal strata of the C3 sequence, and as such, is equivalent to the Mount Auburn Formation of the traditional nomenclature. Third member of the Ashlock Formation. Underlain by the Gilbert Member and overlain by the Terrill Member.
Straight Creek - Used in Ohio to distinguish laterally equivalent, more limestone-rich strata, laterally equivalent to the Mount Auburn Formation. Represents shallow subtidal strata of the C3 sequence, as does the Mount Auburn. Uppermost member of the Grant Lake Formation. Underlain by the Corryville Member of the Grant Lake and overlain by the Bull Fork Formation.
Sunset - Has two distinct uses, one of which is in the correct, original sense, and one of which needs to be changed to a new name. Originally, Sunset used for lagoonal facies (medium to thick-bedded, shale-poor, micritic limestones) of the C4 sequence in central Kentucky. There, it is mapped as the fifth member of Ashlock Formation, is underlain by the Terrill Member, and overlain by the Reba Member. The Sunset was later expanded to include deep-subtidal facies (thin to medium-bedded, micrite-poor skeletal storm beds and shale) of northern Kentucky, southwestern Ohio, and southeastern Indiana. This latter usage is sometimes placed in quotes, to avoid confusion with the true Sunset near its type area in central Kentucky. The Sunset in Ohio and Indiana is mapped traditionally as a member of the Arnheim Formation, overlies the Mount Auburn Formation and is overlain by the Oregonia Member of the Arnheim Formation.
Tate - Used in central Kentucky for peritidal facies of the C2 sequence. Basal member of the Ashlock Formation. Underlain by the Calloway Creek Formation and overlain by the Gilbert Member of the Ashlock Formation. Includes the Back Bed, a tongue of shallow subtidal facies, which may be the depositionally updip equivalent to the Miamitown Shale.
Terrill - Used in central Kentucky for peritidal facies of the C3 sequence. Fourth member of the Ashlock Formation. Underlain by the Stingy Creek Member and overlain by the Sunset Member.
Versailles - Term proposed by Foerste for the strata in southern Indiana and Kentucky that are equivalent to the Liberty and Whitewater at Richmond, Indiana, owing to the difficulty of distinguishing these units farther south.
Waynesville - Used for offshore facies of the C5 sequence. Overlies Oregonia Member of Arnheim Formation and is overlain by Liberty Formation. Used in traditional and Tobin systems in Ohio, Indiana, and northern Kentucky.
Wesselman - Tongue of the Kope Formation that penetrates the lower Fairview Formation near Cincinnati, Ohio. Pinches out to the southeast. Recognized only where it is underlain by the North Bend Tongue of the Fairview Formation. Also known as the cyclic interval of the lower Fairview, where authors do not employ the terms North Bend Tongue and Wesselman Tongue. The base of the Wesselman Tongue corresponds closely to the original, traditional base of the Fairview Formation. In other words, the North Bend Tongue of the Fairview Formation is what traditionally would have been known as the uppermost McMicken Member of the Latonia Shale, and the Wesselman Tongue of the Kope Formation is what traditionally would have been called the basal Mount Hope Member of the Fairview Formation.
Whitewater - Used shallow subtidal facies of the C5 and C6 sequences in Ohio and Indiana. In Indiana, Whitewater overlies the Saluda and is overlain by Silurian strata. In Ohio, Whitewater overlies the Liberty Formation and is overlain by the Drakes Formation.
Winchester - Term proposed by Campbell in the Richmond Folio of the Geologic Atlas of the United States for strata in Kentucky above the Flanagan chert and below the Garrard sandstone.
