Geological Features of Northwest Connecticut

1. Geological Features of Northwest Connecticut

2. Formation • The northwest corner /marble valley of Connecticut is part of the proto –North American tectonic plate • The most characteristic feature of the Northwest Highlands is their high, steep-sided plateaus. • The plateaus formed by weather/erosion resistant bedrock than the valleys below. • The plateaus consist of tough schists and granites. • The valleys are sunk into marble, metamorphic rock that is not resistant to weathering and erosion in Connecticut’s climate. Bear Mountain

3. Formation cont. Pre-Historic Coral reef • Formation of marble • Marble is metamorphosed from limestone, a sedimentary rock composed mostly of carbonate mud and the shell fragments of marine fossils. • The lime-rich minerals that make up shells and carbonate mud weather quite easily. (Seashells left outside rapidly take on a dulled appearance for the same reason.) (Bell 2009) Pre-Historic Marine Life

4. Formation cont. Connecticut Pre-Historic Shoreline

5. Formation cont. • Formation of marble valley • Marble is readily dissolved by the slight acidity of natural rainwater, forming deep lowlands between the high plateaus of the Northwest Highlands. • The Housatonic River flows through the valley and drains into Long Island Sound • The lowlands of the northwest corner is referred to as the marble valley (Bell 20o9) Housatonic River

6. Formation cont. • Marble is metamorphic rock of limestone Marble Valley

7. Kent Falls State Park

8. Location • Kent Falls is located in the town of Kent in the northwest section of Connecticut near the New York State border Kent Falls State park

9. Kent Falls state park Information • ScatacookNative Americans named the area • Settled the area and fished the waters • Falls Brook forms a series of waterfalls that result in over 70 feet of cascades • Consists of 295 acres • Developed in the 1930’s by the Civil Works Administration (CWA) • 1970’s hiking trails are developed by the Youth Conservation Corps of Connecticut

10. Why Kent Falls State Park? Approximate location of Connecticut • The most outstanding feature at Kent Falls is, of course, the falls • Made of a series of falls and cascades that generally form where the bedrock contains alternating hard and soft layers. • This part of Connecticut was once made of coral reefs, offshore from the northwestern part of the state.

11. Why Kent Falls State Park cont.? • The corals made of limestone metamorphosed under extreme pressure from the colliding tectonics plates into marble • The easily weathered/eroded marble wears away at a faster rate causing a drop in elevation (CT D.E.P. 2009) Eroded marble potholes from swirling pebbles in water Exposed marble at bottom of valley

12. Recreation • Sight seeing Kent Falls covered bridge

13. Recreation cont. • Hiking

14. Recreation cont. Scenic overlook

15. Recreation cont. Enjoying the cool water Picnicking

16. Work cited • http://www.ct.gov/Dep/cwp/view.asp?a=2716&q=325228&depNav_GID=1650 (2009) • http://www.tmsc.org/face_of_ct/index.html (2009)

17. Assessment • Write one paragraph describing how the marble valley of Northwest Connecticut was formed.