A Resource for Information on the Commonwealth's Geology
Cumberland Gap, elevation 506 m (1,660′), in the far southwestern corner of Virginia is a wind gap near the geographic triple point* between Virginia, Tennessee, and Kentucky. The gap has long been an important crossing point through the Appalachian Mountains, and lies at the western edge of the Valley & Ridge province with the Appalachian Plateau province […]
This image illustrates part of the geological map of Highland County, Virginia in the Valley & Ridge province. Note the linear belts Paleozoic sedimentary rocks that are repeated by folding. From oldest to youngest these include O1 = lower Ordovician strata, O2 = upper Ordovician strata, S1 = Silurian strata, SD = Silurian-Devonian strata, D1 […]
On July 1, 2016, Governor Terry McCauliffe signed a bill into law that made nelsonite the first official state rock of Virginia. The initiative for this project was led by students from Piedmont Virginia Community College. Michelle Stanislaus and her classmates from their Historical Geology class and Government class ran the petition for this law starting […]