PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION OF NEW EXPOSURES OF UPPER DEVONIAN STRATA, ELKINS, WEST VIRGINIA

Recent highway construction northwest of Elkins, WV, has exposed a significant portion of the Upper Devonian stratigraphic section including the Brallier, Foreknobs, and Hampshire formations. This spectacular new road cut reveals the westernmost exposure of these sedimentary units in northern WV and gives new insight into their stratigraphy, paleontology, and sedimentology.

Compared to exposures of the Upper Devonian further to the east, the Hampshire is much thinner, the Foreknobs has about the same thickness, and the Brallier Formation is thinner but also severely deformed. Significantly, the Scherr Formation, which should underlie the Foreknobs, is missing. The absence of the Scherr and the deformation of the Brallier suggest that faulting has disrupted this section.

Detailed description of 750 feet of the freshly exposed Foreknobs was completed in August 2001. The lithology, sedimentary structures, and fossils of the Foreknobs all suggest deposition in a regressive, high-energy, marine setting. Two distinct fossil assemblages, separated by 150 feet of strata, were identified. These assemblages are characterized by different species of brachiopods and by the presence or absence of pelecypods. Abundant, well-preserved fossil material assisted in the recognition of the members of the Foreknobs. While the possibility of faulting made positive identification difficult, based on the lithology and fossil data, we believe that the Blizzard Member is present but the Mallow, Briery Gap, Pound, and Red Lick members are absent. Whether these members are missing due to facies changes or structural deformation has not yet been determined.