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School Project: Georgia Sampler


MeargleSchmeargl

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Over the next month, I have a school project relating to collecting at multiple different GA sites for the school news show. Already know I can head to the Conasauga Formation for one stop, and I'm also thinking of checking out Cretaceous deposits down South for the first time. Any recommendations as to specific Cretaceous GA sites, or other sites in general in GA? Wanna keep it in-state so it'll stay as local.

Every single fossil you see is a miracle set in stone, and should be treated as such.

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Unfortunately Cretaceous sites are not so easy to come by in Georgia.  Many locations that used to exist along the Chattahochee River were flooded when the Walter George Dam was built, creating Lake Walter George (Lake Eufaula to Alabamians).  An excellent Ripley site used to be present in a roadcut on Hwy 27 a couple of miles north of Lumpkin, GA but GDOT widened the highway and graded and planted the exposure a few years ago.  You can still find a few things (Exogyra, Pycnodonte, Flemingostrea, and Anomia shells mostly) in erosion channels on the slope, but nothing like what you could find previously.  There are a few sites along a couple of streams, but the land has been leased to hunting clubs and is inaccessible at the moment.

 

In fact, it is not easy to find good sites anywhere in Georgia.  Excellent Eocene sites used to be exposed by kaolin mining operations but these days it is hard to get access, in part because the state is pressuring mining companies to reclaim mines as soon as they close.  Several good sites (such as the Hardie Mine in Gordon, GA) have been reclaimed and the fossil layers are buried.  

 

I'll point out that Georgia is a large state and it's not clear what you mean by "local".  My favorite Eocene site is a 3 hr drive from downtown Atlanta, 4 hrs from Marietta or the northern suburbs, and that does not allow for traffic, which can easily add an another hour in the Atlanta area.  Alabama is actually a lot better for collecting.

 

Don

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1 hour ago, FossilDAWG said:

Unfortunately Cretaceous sites are not so easy to come by in Georgia.  Many locations that used to exist along the Chattahochee River were flooded when the Walter George Dam was built, creating Lake Walter George (Lake Eufaula to Alabamians).  An excellent Ripley site used to be present in a roadcut on Hwy 27 a couple of miles north of Lumpkin, GA but GDOT widened the highway and graded and planted the exposure a few years ago.  You can still find a few things (Exogyra, Pycnodonte, Flemingostrea, and Anomia shells mostly) in erosion channels on the slope, but nothing like what you could find previously.  There are a few sites along a couple of streams, but the land has been leased to hunting clubs and is inaccessible at the moment.

 

In fact, it is not easy to find good sites anywhere in Georgia.  Excellent Eocene sites used to be exposed by kaolin mining operations but these days it is hard to get access, in part because the state is pressuring mining companies to reclaim mines as soon as they close.  Several good sites (such as the Hardie Mine in Gordon, GA) have been reclaimed and the fossil layers are buried.  

 

I'll point out that Georgia is a large state and it's not clear what you mean by "local".  My favorite Eocene site is a 3 hr drive from downtown Atlanta, 4 hrs from Marietta or the northern suburbs, and that does not allow for traffic, which can easily add an another hour in the Atlanta area.  Alabama is actually a lot better for collecting.

 

Don

Local as far as I'm concerned is anything found in Georgia. I know the northwest corner has good sites that I've actually been too (particularly the site on the Conasauga with the Cambrian trilo site that is quite productive, and has also been mentioned recently), just wondering if anyone knew of other places. I'd have a feeling a Neogene formation is exposed somewhere near Savannah that washes shark teeth, Ray plates and the occasional vert to the barrier islands. I also have heard of a few Carboniferous sites along the Alabama border that produce some decent plant material.

Every single fossil you see is a miracle set in stone, and should be treated as such.

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The shark tooth site near Savannah is actually some islands in the river that are made of material dredged from the harbor.  They are accessible by canoe or kayak, or alternatively there is a commercial outfit that does guided trips.  There have been a couple of posts to the Forum about that.

The plant site is, if I recall correctly, on private property but the Georgia Mineral Society does occasional field trips there.  I have not been there yet myself, but it's on my "bucket list".

 

Don

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