LITHOSTRATIGRAPHICAL CLASSIFICATION OF THE CHALK IN NORTH YORKSHIRE, HUMBERSIDE AND LINCOLNSHIRE

C. J. WOOD [B.Sc.] and E. G. SMITH [B.Sc.]
Proceedings of the Yorkshire Geological Society, 42, 263-287, 1 September 1978, https://doi.org/10.1144/pygs.42.2.263

SUMMARY

It has long been known that the Chalk of England north of the Wash is materially different from that of the southern counties, and it is now generally accepted that the two successions belong to separate depositional provinces. The standard tripartite classification of the Chalk into Lower, Middle and Upper divisions derives from the southern succession, and its use in the north cannot be justified on either lithological or palaeontological grounds. Indeed these divisions have confused and unsatisfactory definitions in southern England.

It is proposed that the Chalk of northern England should be regarded as a lithostratigraphical group consisting of four formations (in ascending order the Ferriby, Welton, Burnham and Flamborough Chalk Formations). The Ferriby Chalk Formation includes the Red Chalk, which will no longer have any formal status. There is little detailed knowledge of the Flamborough Chalk Formation, but the three lower formations are remarkably constant throughout the region, so that, for instance, marl bands a centimetre or two thick and individual flint horizons can be correlated from Flamborough Head to the Louth area of Lincolnshire. The boundaries of the formations are described in some detail and are shown to be mappable horizons.

VI. REFERENCES

    1. Barrois C.
    1876. Recherches sur le Terrain Crétacé Supérieur de l’Angleterre et de l’Irlande. Lille, 232 pp.
    1. Blake J. F.
    1878. On the Chalk of Yorkshire. Proc. Geol. Ass. 5, 232–270.
    OpenUrlCrossRef
    1. Bogg E.
    1816. A sketch of the geology of the Lincolnshire Wolds. Trans. geol. Soc. Lond. 3, 392–398.
    OpenUrl
    1. Bower C. R.,
    2. Farmery J. R.
    1910. The zones of the Lower Chalk of Lincolnshire. Proc. Geol. Ass. 21, 333–359.
    OpenUrlCrossRef
    1. Dakyns J. R.,
    2. Fox-Strangways C.
    1886. The geology of the country around Driffield. Mem. geol. Surv. U.K., vi + 24 pp.
    1. Dakyns J. R.,
    2. Fox-Strangways C.,
    3. Cameron A. G.
    1886. The geology of the country between York and Hull. Mem. geol. Surv. U.K., + 54 pp.
    1. Hill W.
    1888. On the lower beds of the Upper Cretaceous Series in Lincolnshire and Yorkshire. Q. Jl geol. Soc. Lond. 44, 320–367.
    OpenUrlCrossRef
    1. Jeans C. V.
    1973. The Market Weighton Structure: tectonics, sedimentation and diagenesis during the Cretaceous. Proc. Yorks. geol. Soc. 39, 409–444.
    OpenUrl
    1. Judd J. W.
    1867. On the strata which form the base of the Lincolnshire Wolds, Q. Jl geol. Soc. Lond. 23, 227–251.
    OpenUrlCrossRef
    1. Jukes-Browne A. J.
    1880. The subdivisions of the Chalk. Geol. Mag. (2) 7, 248–257.
    OpenUrlCrossRef
    1. Jukes-Browne A. J.
    1887. The geology of east Lincolnshire including the country near the towns of Louth, Alford and Spilsby. Mem. geol. Surv. U.K. vi + 181 pp.
    1. Jukes-Browne A. J.,
    2. Hill W.
    1903. The Cretaceous rocks of Britain. Vol. 2—The Lower and Middle Chalk of England. Mem. geol. Surv. U.K. xiii + 568 pp.
    1. Jukes-Browne A. J.,
    2. Hill W.
    1904. Cretaceous rocks of Britain, Vol. 3. —The Upper Chalk of England. Mem. geol. Surv. U.K. x + 566 pp.
    1. Kent P. E.
    1937. A lateral change in the Red Chalk. Trans. Lincs. Nat. Union 9, 166–167.
    OpenUrl
    1. Lamplugh G. W.
    1896. Notes on the White Chalk of Yorkshire. Proc. Yorks. geol. Soc. 12, 65–87.
    OpenUrl
    1. Mortimer R.
    1878. On the flints of the Chalk of Yorkshire. Proc. Geol. Ass. 5, 344–354.
    OpenUrlCrossRef
    1. Orbigny A. d’
    1852. Cours élémentaire de paléontology et de géologie stratigraphique, 2, 268–949. Paris.
    OpenUrl
    1. Penning W. H.,
    2. Jukes-Browne A. J.
    1881. The Geology of the neighbourhood of Cambridge. Mem. geol. Surv. U.K., vi + 184 pp.
    1. Phillips J.
    1829. Illustrations of the geology of Yorkshire; or a description of the strata and organic remains of the Yorkshire coast. York, xvi + 192 pp.
    1. Rawson P. F.,
    2. et al.
    1978. A correlation of Cretaceous rocks in the British Isles. Geol. Soc. Lond, Spec. Rep. 9, 70 pp.
    OpenUrl
    1. Rhys G. H.
    (Compiler) 1974, A proposed standard lithostratigraphic nomenclature for the southern North Sea and an outline structural nomenclature for the whole of the (U.K.) North Sea. A report of the joint Oil Industry—Institute of Geological Sciences Committee on North Sea Nomenclature. Rep. Inst. geol. Sci. 74/8, 14 pp.
    OpenUrl
    1. Rowe A. W.
    1904. The zones of the white Chalk of the English coast. IV—Yorkshire. Proc. Geol. Ass. 18, 193–296.
    OpenUrlCrossRef
    1. Rowe A. W.
    1929. The zones of the white Chalk of Lincolnshire. Naturalist No. 875 411–439.
    OpenUrl
    1. Smart J. G. O.,
    2. Wood C. J.
    1976. Field meeting in South Humberside. Proc. Yorks. geol. Soc. 40, 586–593.
    OpenUrl
    1. Smith W.
    1816. Strata identified by organised fossils. London, 32 pp.
    1. Strahan A.
    1886. Notes on the relations of the Lincolnshire Carstone. Q. Jl geol. Soc. Lond. 42, 486–493.
    OpenUrlCrossRef
    1. Taylor R. C.
    1823. Geological section of Hunstanton Cliff, Norfolk. Phil. Mag. 61, 81–83.
    OpenUrl
    1. Woodward S.
    1833. An outline of the geology of Norfolk. Norwich.
    1. Wright C. W.,
    2. Wright E. V.
    1942. The Chalk of the Yorkshire Wolds. Proc. Geol. Ass. 53, 112–127.
    OpenUrlCrossRef
Back to top
Alerts
Citation tools
Permissions
View PDF
Email to

Related Articles

Similar Articles

Cited By...