RACCOON SHALE
The Raccoon Shale is a gray
shale-dominated member of the upper Cuyahoga Formation in eastern Ohio.
It is ~equivalent to the Wooster Shale Member and the Meadville Shale Member of
northeastern Ohio. The Raccoon consists principally of interbedded gray
shales and gray siltstones. Regional correlations have indicated that it
is upper Kinderhookian (lower Lower Mississippian).
In Licking County, Ohio, the
Raccoon Shale is a well known radon producer (e.g., see Lackmeyer, 2002 -
Denison Journal of the Geosciences 16). Radon is a short-lived
radioactive gas generated as a result of uranium decay. Dark shales in
general are well known to have relatively high background concentrations of
uranium.
Moots Run - a stream running directly
over Raccoon Shale bedrock. The type section of the Raccoon Shale is a
tall creek bank exposure just downstream from here. Location:
creek on the southern side of Morse Road, southern St. Albans Township,
west-central Licking County, central Ohio, USA. GPS
of site: 40˚ 3.617’ North, 82˚ 36.138’
West.
Lobdell Creek - the Raccoon is well
exposed in stream bank cuts here. Raccoon Shale also floors the creek
itself. Occasional interbeds of fine-grained sandstone occur in a
succession of gray shale and siltstone.
Raccoon Shale creek cut along Lobdell
Creek.
Location: Lobdell Creek stream bank
just west of the Battee Road-Lobdell Road intersection & bridge, northern
St. Albans Township, west-central Licking County, central Ohio, USA. GPS
of site: 40˚ 6.209’ North, 82˚ 35.942’
West.