Paleozoic age of the Walden Creek Group, Ocoee Supergroup, in the western Blue Ridge, southern Appalachians: Implications for evolution of the Appalachian margin of Laurentia

Research Article| July 01, 2000 Paleozoic age of the Walden Creek Group, Ocoee Supergroup, in the western Blue Ridge, southern Appalachians: Implications for evolution of the Appalachian margin of Laurentia Raphael Unrug; Raphael Unrug 1Department of Geological Sciences, Wright State University, Dayton, Ohio 45435, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar William I. Ausich; William I. Ausich 2Department of Geological Sciences, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 43210, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Jolanta Bednarczyk; Jolanta Bednarczyk 3Department of Geological Sciences, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas 75275, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Roger J. Cuffey; Roger J. Cuffey 4Department of Geosciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Bernard L. Mamet; Bernard L. Mamet 5Département de Géologie, Université de Montréal, C.P. 6128 Succursale A, Montréal, Québec H3C 3J7, Canada Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Steven L. Palmes; Steven L. Palmes 6Department of Geology, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida 32306, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Sophia Unrug Sophia Unrug 1Department of Geological Sciences, Wright State University, Dayton, Ohio 45435, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar GSA Bulletin (2000) 112 (7): 982–996. https://doi.org/10.1130/0016-7606(2000)112<982:PAOTWC>2.0.CO;2 Article history received: 01 May 1998 accepted: 05 Aug 1999 first online: 01 Jun 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Raphael Unrug, William I. Ausich, Jolanta Bednarczyk, Roger J. Cuffey, Bernard L. Mamet, Steven L. Palmes, Sophia Unrug; Paleozoic age of the Walden Creek Group, Ocoee Supergroup, in the western Blue Ridge, southern Appalachians: Implications for evolution of the Appalachian margin of Laurentia. GSA Bulletin 2000;; 112 (7): 982–996. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/0016-7606(2000)112<982:PAOTWC>2.0.CO;2 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGSA Bulletin Search Advanced Search Abstract In the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains in Tennessee, low-grade metamorphic rocks of the Walden Creek Group, Ocoee Supergroup, contain a fossil assemblage composed of trilobites, bryozoans, ostracodes, pelmatozoans, algae, and agglutinated foraminifers, indicating a Silurian or younger age. The new paleontological data contradict older ideas on the Neoproterozoic age of the Walden Creek Group. The Walden Creek Group was not deposited in a continental rift basin preceding the opening of the Iapetus ocean but, possibly, in a pull-apart basin formed in a transtensional event during the Acadian orogeny. There is no field evidence indicating that the Walden Creek Group is separated from the lower units of the Ocoee Supergroup by a basin-wide unconformity and hiatus. A tentative geodynamic model is presented for the Ocoee Supergroup basin; the model is dependent on paleontological data indicating a Paleozoic age for the Walden Creek Group and concentrates on lithologic, petrographic, and basin characteristics. The model allows for the possibility that the entire Ocoee Supergroup was deposited in a Paleozoic transtensional basin. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.