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https://hdl.handle.net/11681/10505| Title: | Geologic Investigation of the Middle Mississippi River |
| Authors: | United States. Army. Corps of Engineers. Vicksburg District United States. Army. Corps of Engineers. St. Louis District Woerner, Eric G. Dunbar, Joseph B. Villanueva, Evelyn, 1967- Smith, Lawson M. |
| Keywords: | Alluvial valley Alluvial rivers Engineering geology Geology Middle Mississippi River Surface geology |
| Publisher: | Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory (U.S.) Engineer Research and Development Center (U.S.) |
| Description: | Technical Report Abstract: This report is concerned with mapping the Quaternary geology of an area comprising portions of approximately ten topographic quadrangles that cover an area of the Middle Mississippi River from St. Louis, MO, on the northern boundary of the study area, to Cape Girardeau, MO, on the southern boundary (Figure 1). The entire study area is within the U.S. Army Engineer District, St. Louis, extending from river mile 50 at Cape Girardeau to river mile 189 at St. Louis. Physiographically, the floodplain of the Middle Mississippi River is flanked by steep sedimentary bedrock uplands. At its widest point, the floodplain is no more than 19 km (12 miles) across but typically averages approximately 8 km (5 miles) in width. Throughout the valley, the Mississippi River generally flows along the base of either valley wall. The largest metropolitan area in the study area is St. Louis, MO. The purpose of this investigation has been to (A.) determine the areal distribution and physical characteristics of the various alluvial deposits, (B.) reconstruct the general geologic history of the area, (C.) conduct subsurface stratigraphic correlation of various geologic environments of deposition as an aid in determining foundation and underseepage conditions, and (D.) determine the depth and general nature of the Paleozoic deposits beneath the Holocene alluvium to the extent possible. For approximately the past 30 years, the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC), Vicksburg, MS, previously the Waterways Experiment Station, has been conducting a continuing geologic investigation of the major drainage basins within the Lower Mississippi Valley and the Deltaic Plain. This study on the Middle Mississippi River is a continuation of these previous studies along the Mississippi River in support of present and future civil works programs by Corps of Engineers District Offices. In all cases, including the present study, the basic data presentation has been a standard 1:62,500-scale topographic map supplemented with the surface geology and one or more detailed geologic cross sections. These geologic maps and cross sections are presented as scanned digital images in a jpeg format. Ten quadrangles comprising this report are shown on the index map in Figure 1. Each quadrangle is accompanied by a sheet containing one or more geologic cross sections which show the distribution of depositional environments on the floodplain of the Middle Mississippi River. The number of cross sections for each quadrangle was dependent on the availability of subsurface boring information. |
| Rights: | Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited. |
| URI: | http://hdl.handle.net/11681/10505 |
| Appears in Collections: | Technical Report |
