Finley, Craig M.

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Subsurface Description and Bedrock Topography Map of The Ohio State University Central Campus Area Senior Thesis Project Craig M. Finley June 5, 1991 The purpose of this report is to describe the subsurface geolo~y of the central campus area at the Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio. In general, the strata here consist of relatively flat-lying sedimentary rock units (dipping slightly to the East) which are overlain by various glacial and f luvial deposits. The surf ace of the bedrock here is rather variable and the thickness and composition of overbLwden varies gr-~tl y fr-om one 1 ocati on to another··. The stratigraphic description in this report is of an idealized section described from the bottom to the surface. Accompanying this report is a subsurface bedrock topography map of the central campus area with cross sections and several stratigraphic columns. The data used in the ~ preparation of the bedrock topography map was obtained from bore hole data records kept at the University Architect 's Office on Millikin Road in Columbus. The bedrock buried under unconsolidated material in the central campus area consists pr i marily of shale and J. i mestont~. Deeper units were not reached by build i ng site borings, therefor~ they will not be described in this report. For a description of some deeper uni ts described from a core taken behind Mendenhall Laboratory on O.S.U campus, see attached Figure 1 . This limestone and dolostone is highly variable in lithology. It grades from thin shaly layers with nodules of chert to massive limestone with few impurities. Th). s uni t has an average thickness of 32 feet in Franklin County <Kovach and Baker, 1966). It has a medium gray to light-olive-grey color, sparsely-fossiliferous, and shows some poorly-developed styolites. The Delaware Limestone sits on top of the older and much thicker Columbus Limestone; the boundary between the two is generally marked by an abrupt change from the massive, cherty Delaware to the highly fossiliferous, skeletal Columbus Limestone The Olentangy Shale is composed principally of bluish-grey to greenish-grey clay shale with black fissile beds in upper portion <Kovach and Baker, 1966). Thin interbedded layers of argillaceous limestone are characteristic. The Olentangy shale is soft and easily weathered. This :i. s:. evidenced by the relatively- thick sections o f unconsolidated , w~athered s hale encountered in s everal borings. Qt2i.9 §b~1§ ~ The Ohio Shale is brown to blue- black, carbonaceous, and contains some siliceous sands. Weathered surfaces of Ohio ~'.'.)h<::"\le h21v€~ a di~~;tinc:tivE? bluE· color. {!-1is; unit is p1"· f2~~-ent in the subsurface only in the very northeast corner of the central campus area~ The d79s]. ti on al was shallow marine. environment of all three of these units These sedimi-::nts were deposited during the Devonian Period while the central Ohio area was inundated by a shallow sea. ~~9!:9£~ §'=\r,:fEse The surface of the bedrock underlying the central campus area has been carved and shaped by the advanc<::? .:md 1~etreat of five major ice sheets over the last million years. The highly abrasive nature of these ice advances and their associated processes modified the bedrock relief considt~rably ..:md then preserved this landscape i.n a blanket of unconsol i. dated mci.t.er·i. al. Di rect:t y on top the bedrock surface i.n ·many areas, there i.s a layer containing angular ~ragments of the underlying material. This indicates that the $Urf21ce wc:-\s .e:·:t.ensivf;;ly sc:our .. ed by •;ilacial action. Angular fragments of shale on top of unweathered limestone bedro~k probably indicate~ glacial removal of shale bedrock to expose the underlying limestone Yns9!J?.9l!.9E!~9 m~!:§r:i~ls Thickness of the unconsolidated material covering the bedr .. o~ck varies from over sevf.:mty feE:~t to less than ten feet ac:ross the central campus area. The average thickness bf c:over is between thirty and fo-rty feet. The lowest portion of 1 ..;ir1conso.lidated material generally bedrock. Ne:·d:. there i$ ch·aracteristically a thick layer of glac:ia.l t ,ill containing t:obbles of e ,:<otic niaterial ·s <i.e. gr·.a.ni t.e> with i nterm:i. ttant l ense$ of wel 1 ~sorted out wash sand and 9ravel. out~'llash but in other·s, the ovet-b14r··den const sts .al most e;ntirel y of OL.1twash s~\nd and gravel. The uppe1~ few ·feet of ~ cl._ strata i .s f i 11 an'\ t.opsoi 1. Borings taken near the o.Jd • floodpl<;:iiri of the olentangy show S£"~Ver.a1 feet of alluviwn '? consi .sting of clays and· fine s ilt, Several bor in.gs t.:.~ken ~:1,t sites along the .west;.en1 edge o.f the cent1~a1 campL.tS. area in.di catJ:? the presence of some.organic: Laboratory; 1965) near the southea.st corner of Park,s Hal 1 ·i.ndi.cC':::\tes the ·presence of a four foot t:hiC:k layer of peat, hLtmLis, and wood fragme.rits buried under eight feet o+ clay and s i 1 t. (al 1 L\ vi L.tm) • Direc;tly b<:7me.atr1 th.is orgamic layer is a thick s•quance <33 feet) of glacial till. Several other test bori ngs taken in the present foi.,mdi;\\ti ons of Li nc:ol n an.d Montt> Tower s alsb containe.d organic layer-s <.:;it.ting on top of g 1 ac: i <:\\ 1 ti 11 c.1 epos its. Near" thf:? Nqrth ·end of Oh~o StC;\dl.um, a ('!" shallDW test boring <Mason, Sandefur. and DeVerteuil, Jnc., l.9194) r·evealed a thin Layer of wood frc.:\~Jments sitting on top o.f an out wash dsposi t. This or.gani c 1 ayer sef-::ms to be rel a\ti vel y t:,orrt: i. nLtOLts alc>n g the edge of camp1.ts near t .he Olen.tangy River; it probably represents the burial of post-r gt.ac:ifa,l vegetation by 1;.h$ e,~r .iv f '.1. gtl!tl·P·la~ ·n' depe:tsits of thEJ dlen.tang;t • eai ·te\bl .1?" f i.or t::<:tr'bcH'l .. ~14 datin9 c:pi.1lit!I b·~ ol;>tain~d .:from eHi!!ll!tini;i S·amph~.s 'l:ii\\keh ·at the.1Se 1Qt;~tiotl$ Pt' l"l~:W S.g)~l t:):Pf'°Jri<;J.$ C(:;)Ul.d be . · i :cB:::om:f,:re'tent n at:ur e of t:2J:hc:::1t Jfllilt.;er i a J! ., I ~-= , '/ ,_ i CYCL 1 ~~·~\ ~ .._ \ ~ \-( f \ ( I I \ \ \ \ I I I I \ l C IL.. ZAT'"IQN, JL;.. .. 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J 5\-y~\;\-c.".>) l/u~-t-;\\;"~ s,.._.- ~\c..-'\-<l: c.,_..,_J. do\c,,__ ;+e --""J-.\~SS~t>--\L-6_\lv'"\-a: ~r~.,.,,_~ ______ ~ _ _ _______ _ C. c. \.., ""\o,JS \.\""a. -:,-l-o"a: 1 \:>a.\\,,\ '('l'\<z...11v\ \oa_r - S ¥....: l«-k\ \ ; ""te.~"a . '''"'+-'.':Jrtt-,Y )'-'-'\-\:'-. ,..,..:,..~, \''ff ;->,.--c ) \Ju'j - ,C;\\\,..7 Q...j"v-..a: Jrc...\ C.,,,__\c_l-hz: C.r-ys+o..\s . t\r:,u"ol.._~+ J,,.'.l,., .. "'+s c.-f! 'Y4.\,.. .. :..-.. ~~., > ~"j <>"-"- a....,,.,o/. C.e>\on.;ev\ c...orc._,\'> ) 'or._c..\,...:~p<=>d s J c..nv\. + r ; \.,\,;-\-a_:; . -- - -- --- -- - --- -~- --- -- -- -- ---Lo\....,.....,,, \.:iv 7 L~N'-<".>-t'o"""') ~Ila.po;.--\- ""-o.""'b~...- - do\<>""'-;1-.;,,_ h"1ao7+o.f\<Z. 1 Jol 0 s-l-o,..a 1 "'-"d. <:.,\.,,a:.r+) Sp"<' C..ct.n-,dn.+ l .f.,"4. -+e> Cca..r'a. C.~ys-fc.\\;,-.._. UJ.;.ll cl"-ua.\opc.J. S-\-yo\-,\,S. Seo..\\~"'- Grov~ '-'"J.;.C-f<'"'-t\*';"--\¢J. - d o les+.=.""- ,C.J .. ,,.,~ / fYl·,...._o,... S L...J«c J Ma.d1u,..... ".> rc.7 -\-b. yal\o~-7'"-/ ,"'\\,:,~ \,.,..JJ.;"''j +,,. \a_.....,·, ..._..._-\-a.Ji ·) '"'"..-\._,..:...._.W, "-u"-\-\... S"""-\OL5 i ..... ~o....,c. \n-\1z./vo--.\-s. REFERENCES. Kovach,J. ~and F.J Baker, 1966, Project X-301 Phy&ical Studies- Geology of Franklin CoLtnty, Ohio; Comprehensive Regional Plan of Columbus and Franklin County.25 p.3 figs. Stauffer,C.R., G.D. Hubbard, and J.A. Bownocker,1911, Geology of the Columbus GlL1adran~~le., Geological Survey of Dh.io Fourth Series, Bulletin 14, 129 p. 3 maps Bore . Data: availa.ble at Office of The Univf:"?rsity Ach.itect Al con Core Dril 1 ing of Col L.tmbus Col umbLts Diamond Core Dr i 11 i.ng Company Col umbus Tes·t Bor i ,ng Comp.any Columbus Testing Laboratot~ y Grey, Hamilton, Professiona l Engineer; Site Plan Reports Dunbar Geotechnical Engineers H.C. Nutting Co., Engineers and Chemists · Mason, Sandefur, and DaVerteuil,inc. 

Subsurface description and bedrock topography map of The Ohio State University central campus area

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Subsurface description and bedrock topography map of The Ohio State University central campus area

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