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The Alaska Earthquake 

~Kodiak 

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~ 

March 27, 1964 

Martin-Bering 

Rivers Area 

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 543-B 

THE ALASKA EARTHQUAKE, MARCH 27, 1964: 

R·EGIONAL EFFECTS 

Geomorphic Effects of the 

Earthquake of March 27, 1964 

In the Martin-Bering 

Rivers Area, Alaska 

By SAMUEL J. TUTHILL and WILSON M. LAIRD 

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 543-B 
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

STEW ART L. UDALL, Secretary 

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

William T. Pecora, Director 

UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON: 1966 

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office 

Washington, D.C. 20402- Price 30 cents (paper cover) 
THE 

ALASKA EARTHQUAKE 

SERIES 

The U.S. Geological Survey is publishing the 

results of investigations of the earthquake in a 

series of six Professional Papers. Professional 

Paper 543 describes the regional effects of the 

earthquake. Other Professional Papers describe 

the effects of the earthquake on communities; the 

effects on hydrology; the effects on transportation, communications, and utilities ; and the history 

of the field investigations and reconstruction 

effort. 

Page 

Abstract --------------------------------------- Bl 

Introduction --------------------------------- 1 

Acknowledgments ____________ 2 

Geomorphic effects of the Alaska 

earthquake -------------------------------- 3 

Earthquake-induced ground 

fractures ---------------------------- 3 

Mudvent deposits ________________ 8 

Earthquake-fountain 

era ters -------------------------------- 11 

Subsidence craters ______________ 11 

Mudcones ------------------------------ 13 

Page 

1. Index map showing location 

of Martin-Bering Rivers 

area ---------------------------------------- B2 

2. Map of earthquake-induced 

ground fractures, middle 

Martin River valley______________ 3 

3. Earthquake-induced ground 

fracture, upper Martin 

River valley _________________________ 4 

4. Histograms and percent-frequency curves of earthquake-induced ground fractures ------------------------------------- 6 

5. Map, frequency diagram, histograms, and percent-frequency curves of earthquake-induced ground fractures in the middle Martin 

River valley __________________________ 7 

CONTENTS 

Geomorphic effects-Con. Page 

Avalanches ---------------------------- B13 

Snow avalanches______ 14 

Rock avalanches __________ 17 

Dust ------------------------------ 19 

Subaqueous landslides ________ 19 

Turbidity changes in lakes on the Martin River 

glacier -------------------------------- 21 

Filling of ice-walled 

sinkholes ---------------------------- 21 

Gravel-coated snow cones_____ 22 

Lake-ice fracture __________________ 24 

ILLUSTRATIONS 

FIGURES 

Page 

6. Histogram and cumulative curve of total fracture displacement ------------------------------ B8 

7. Earthquake-induced ground 

fractures, Copper River 

delta ----------------------------------- 8 

8, 9. Mudvent deposits ____________________ 9, 10 

10. Cross section of a mudvent 

deposit ------------------------------- 10 

11. Earthquake-fountain crater __ 11 

12. Subsidence crater in upper Martin River _______________________ 12 

13. Subsidence craters in Copper River delta __________________________ 12 

14. Mud cones -------------------------------- 13 

15. Camp and Sioux glacier slides 14 

16. Map of Martin-Bering Rivers area showing generalized 

distribution of avalanches__ 15 

Geomorphic effects-Con. Page 

Evidence of regional 

uplift ---------------------------------- B26 

Faulting -------------------------------- 26 

Effects of the earthquake upon animal populations __________________ 26 

Migratory fish _____________________ 2.6 

Land snails ---------------------------- 27 

Fur-bearing animals____________ 27 

Testimony of the only 

resident of the area ________ 27 

References cited -------------------------- 28 

Page 

17. Map showing avalanches in 

the Chugach Mountains 

area -------------------------------------- B 16 

18. Avalanche debris and source areas of Camp slide______________ 17 

19-21. Bathymetric maps: 19. Tokun Lake ______________________ 18 

20. Northeast part of Lake 

Charlotte ________________________ 20 

21. Northern part of 

Kushtaka Lake ____________ 21 

22. Lakes in terminus of Martin 

River glacier _______________________ 22 

23. Gravel-covered snow cones ______ 23 

24. Circular bodies of unsorted 

gravel with pebble rims______ 23 

25. Partially melted snow cones__ 24 

26. Idealized diagram of sequence 

of events suggested as an explanation of the formation of snow cones________________ 25 

THE ALASKA EARTHQUAKE, MARCH 27, 1964: REGIONAL EFFECTS 

GEOMORPHIC EFFECTS OF THE EARTHQUAKE OF MARCH 27, 1964, 

IN THE MARTIN-BERING RIVERS AREA, ALASKA 

By SAMUEL J. TUTHILL1 and WILSON M. LAIRD 2 

The Alaska earthquake of March 27, 

1964, caused widespread geomorphic 

changes in the Martin-Bering Rivers 

area-900 square miles of uninhabited 

mountains, alluvial flatlands, and 

marshes north of the Gulf of Alaska, 

and east of the Copper River. This area 

is at lat 60°30' N. and long 144°22' W., 

32 miles east of Cordova, and approximately 130 miles east-southeast of the 

epicenter of the earthquake. 

The Martin-Bering Rivers 

area lies between lat 60 o 15' N. 

and 60°45' N. and long 144 °00' 

W. and 144 o 45' W. Our discussion is confined to the region 

shown on the Cordova B-1 

(1951), B-2 (1950), C-1 (1959), 

and C-2 (1959) quadrangles of 

the U.S. Geological Survey topographic series at a scale of 1 :63,-

360. The western edge of the 

area is 32 miles east of the town 

of Cordova. These quadrangles 

include approximately 900 

square miles of uninhabited, 

marshy, mountainous, and allu1 Assistant Professor of Geology, Muskingum 

College, New Concord, Ohio. 

2 North Dakota State Geologist and Professor 

of Geology, University of North Dakota, Grand 

Forks, N. Dak. 

ABSTRACT 

The geomorphic effects observed 

were: (1) earthquake-induced ground 

fractures, (2) mudvent deposits, (3) 

"earthquake-fountain" craters, ( 4) 

subsidence, (5) mudcones, (6) avalanches, (7) subaqueous landslides, (8) 

turbidity changes in ice-basined lakes 

on the Martin River glacier, (9) filling 

of ice-walled sinkholes, (10) gravelcoated snow cones, (11) lake ice fractures, and (12) uplift accompanied the 

earthquake. 

INTRODUCTION 

vial flatlands, most of which is 

in the Chugach National Forest. 

The area is approximately 130 

miles east-southeast of the epicenter of the Alaska earthquake. 

In the summers of 1962 and 

1963, with the financial support 

of the National Science Foundation, a research team from the 

University of North Dakota, of 

which we were a part, studied the 

limnology, malacology, and glacial geology of the Martin River 

area. The observations and maps 

made during these two summers 

provided the preearthquake data 

for evaluation of the geomorphic 

effects after the earthquake. 

In 1964, fieldwork was carried 

on between June 2 and July 10, 

In addition to geomorphic effects, 

the earthquake affected the animal 

populations of the area. These include 

migratory fish, terrestrial mollusks, 

fur-bearing animals, and man. 

The Alaska earthquake clearly delineated areas of alluvial fill, snow and 

rock avalanche corridors, and deltas of 

the deeper lakes as unsuitable for future construction. 

and was again financed by the 

National Science Foundation. 

The Bering River area has 

been the subject of intensive geologic study in past years because 

coal and petroleum exist in the 

Tertiary rocks of that region. 

Martin (1904, 1905a, 1906, 1907, 

1908, and 1921), C. A. Fisher 

(1910), C. A. Fisher and Calvert 

(1914), W. L. Fisher (1912), 

Miller, Rossman, and Hickcox 

(1945), Miller (1951), Barnes 

(1951), Kachadoorian (1955), 

Payne (1955), and Miller, Payne, 

and Gryc ( 1959) have reported 

on the stratigraphy, economic 

geology, engineering geology, 

and structural geology of the 

area. 

Bl 
B2 

Publications by the University 

of North Dakota parties include 

reports by Reid and Clayton 

(1963), Clayton (1964), Tuthill 

( 1963), Tuthill and Laird (1964), 

and Reid and Callender ( 1965) . 

Grantz, Plafker, and Kachadoorian (1964) and Post (1965) 

have discussed earthquake effects in the Martin-Bering Rivers 

area and Remnitz and Marshall 

(1966) have discussed the effects 

of the Alaskan earthquake on the 

unlithified sediments of the Copper River delta to the west of 

the area of this report. 

There are several physiographic units and two geologic 

provinces in the Martin-Bering 

Rivers area. The region south 

of the Martin River valley and 

east of the Ragged Mountains 

(figs. 1, 16) is underlain by Tertiary rocks. These Tertiary foothills consist of sedimentary and 

slightly metamorphosed rocks 

deformed into complex structural features which have eastnortheast trending axes. The 

northeastern one-eighth of the 

area has been glaciated; valley 

cross sections are not much different in this area, however, 

from those beyond the limit of 

glaciation. 

The Ragged Mountains lie between the Copper River delta 

and the Tertiary foothills east of 

Martin Lake and consist of a 

thrust block of Tertiary(?) igneous and metamorphic rocks. 

The Copper River delta is a 

lowland west of the Ragged 

Mountains underlain by alluvium, and covered by intertidal 

marsh, alde,r, and muskeg 

growths. 

The Bering River valley is a 

low-lying alluvial plain extending 

from the southwest shore of 

Kushtaka Lake and the Be·ring 

Lake area to the sea. 

ALASKA EARTHQUAKE, MARCH 27, 1964 

1.-Index map showing location of the 

Martin-Bering Rivers area. 

The Martin River valley is a 

flat-lying valley train over which 

the main channels of the anastamosing Martin River migrate 

during peak ablation seasons. A 

terminal moraine of the Martin 

River glacier extends across the 

valley from the mountain north 

of Tokun Lake to the Chugach 

Mountains in sec. 20, T. 16 S., 

R. 6 E. (Cordova B-1). About 

6 square miles of alluvial plain 

and dead-ice moraine lie between 

the terminal moraine and the 

present ice front of the glacier. 

This area is designated as the 

upper Martin River valley. That 

part of the valley between the 

terminal moraine and the point 

where the Martin River makes a 

sharp turn to the west in the 

area of the confluence of the Tokun Lake outlet stream and the 

Martin River (sec. 9, T. 17 S., 

R. 6 E., Cordova B-2) is designated as the middle Martin River 

valley. The part of the valley 

west of this is referred to as the 

lower Martin River valley. 

The Martin River valley is 

presumably the trace of the Saint 

Elias-Chugach fault. However, 

the actual nature and detailed 

position of this fault is unknown. 

The Chugach Mountains are a 

thrust block of late Mesozoic 

sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic rocks. In the area covered by this report, the maximum altitude is 7,713 feet above 

sea level ( 1959). Glaciers occupy 

most of the valleys; all the valleys which penetrate the seaward ridge of the Chugach 

Mountains are presently glaciated or have contained glaciers. 

These valleys are steep and Ushaped in cross section. 

Heavy precipitation in the 

area is caused by marine air currents that are forced to drop 

their moisture as they rise over 

the Ragged Mountains, the Tertiary foothills, and the Chugach 

Mountains. Precipitation averages about 145 inches per year 

(U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, 

1941). 

Periods of clear weather of a 

week or more are rare during 

the summer months, and fieldwork is usually hampered by 

rapidly fluctuating lake and river 

levels. 

The growth of Pacific Coastal 

forest in the Prince William 

Sound area (Heusser, 1960, p. 

50) is a direct response to the 

moist climate. Sitka spruce is 

found in much of the betterdrained area below tree line (approximately 1,000-1,200). Mountain muskeg cove,rs the foothills 

above and beyond the glacial deposits. Alder growths cover the 

moraines, the older outwash deposits, and much of the debriscovered terminal surface of the 

glaciers. 

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 

We are deeply indebted to the 

National Science Foundation for 

financial support. 

We wish to express our gratitude to Mr. Theodore F. Freers 

of the North Dakota Geological 

Survey who was a member of 

the field party during the first 

two weeks of June 1964. He 

participated in the collection of 

data in the Sioux glacier area 
GEOMORPHIC EFFECTS, MARTIN-BERING RIVERS AREA B3 

and shares responsibility with 

Tuthill for the map of earthquake-induced ground fractures. 

Several residents of Cordova 

greatly facilitated our field operations. Foremost among these 

were Mr. Karl Barth, Mr. James 

Osborne, and Mr. Kenneth 

Smith. 

GEOMORPHIC EFFECTS OF THE ALASKA EARTHQUAKE 

Twelve geomorphlc effects of 

the Alaska earthquake were observed and (or) studied during 

the 1964 field season. These 

were: ( 1) earthquake-induced 

ground fractures, (2) mudvent 

deposits, ( 3) "earthquake-fountain" craters, ( 4) subsidence, 

(5) mudcones, (6) avalanches, 

(7) subaqueous landslides, (8) 

turbidity changes in ice-basined 

lakes, (9) filling of ice-walled 

sinkholes, (10) gravel-coated 

snow cones, ( 11) lake ice fracture, and (12) effects of regional 

uplift. 

EARTHQUAKE-INDUCED 

GROUND FRACTURES 

The most commonly observed 

geomorphic effect of the Alaska 

earthquake in the Martin-Bering 

Rivers area was earthquake-induced ground fracture (figs. 2, 3). 

Such features, frequently reported as a result of earthquakes, 

usually occur in unlithified sediments and are oriented parallel 

to streambanks. Accounts of 

ground fractures comparable to 

those seen in the Martin-Bering 

Rivers area are given by: Davison (1931), Silgado (1951), 

Levin (1940), Small (1948), 

Oakeshott (1954), and Ulrich 

(1936). 

In the Martin River valley, 

1,461 fractures were measured 

2.-Earthquake-induced ground fractures in the middle Martin River valley. Slump blocks moved toward right. Note 

vertical displacement, especially beside pool, left. 
\ 

5 0 0 

3.-Earthquake-induced ground fractures in the upper Martin River valley. 

EXPLANATION 

D 

Alluvium 

C2IT] 

Marginal moraine 

-----------

........____ Open With mud emissions 

Ground fractures 

~ 

Sinkhole and its drainage 

Section dug through mudvent deposit 

50 

!::. 

Instrument station 

Vegetation 

100 FEET 

6, O o "'s-"'s-, 

t:d 

""' 

00 

~ :;.:: 

> 

o-3 

~ t:I: 

JD 

c:: 

> 

:;.:: 

~l".l 

:s: 

~ 0 

t:I: 

1':) 

-'1 

...... 

"' 0':1 

"'" 
GEOMORPHIC EFFECTS, MARTIN-BERING RIVERS AREA B5 

for strike and, where possible 

for horizontal displacement of 

the adjacent block. Ground fractures were concentrated in the 

third of the valley nearest the 

surficial contact with marginal 

moraines or bedrock and. _within 

50 feet of stream channels. A 

600- by 1,200-foot rectangle in 

the valley was mapped by alidade and planetable to show 

ground fractures (fig. 3). This 

map includes 771 fractures 3 

feet or more in length. The 

parallelism between the major 

fractures and the stream channels is easily observed, and the 

numerous shorter, interconnecting fractures, which mask the 

frequency analysis, can also be 

seen. Only 0.7 percent of the 

measured fractures were compressional. 

The small number of compressional fractures may be due to 

lack of prese·rvation and difficulty in recognizing them on an 

aggrading outwash plain where 

frequent thaw-season floods superimpose confusing minor patterns on preexisting topography. 

The fractures are the result of 

low-gradient slumping in river 

alluvium. Measurable vertical 

displacement was only rarely 

seen (fig. 2). Generally, triangular and rectilinear tracts of alluvium were bounded on all sides 

by tensional fractures. 

The ground was no doubt 

frozen at the time of the earthquake, and surficial grain adjustments were concentrated in relatively large-dimension fractures 

rather than at individual grain 

boundaries. 

Ground fractures ranged in 

length from a few inches to 129 

feet and had a maximum open 

depth of 20 inches. The greatest 

horizontal displacement measured was 17 inches. Measurements were not made on fractures whose edges appeared to 

have caved, howeve·r; consequently, many of the larger fractures were ignored and the 17 

inches of horizontal displacement does not represent a maximum value. 

Thirty-two paced traverses, 

having a total length of 5.9 miles, 

were made in the Martin River 

valley, and a total of 687 fractures were noted. The strike of 

each fracture was plotted and 

compared with the strike of topography, as taken from the 

Cordova B-1 and B-2 U.S. Geollogical Survey 1 :63,360 series topographic quadrangles. 

Histograms and cumulative 

curves of percent frequency were 

prepared for the fractures measured in the upper, middle, and 

lower sections of the Martin 

River valley, and from these a 

cumulative curve for the entire 

valley was plotted (fig. 4, next 

page). To supplement these 

studies, three traverses were 

made to demonstrate some local 

relations between topography 

and crack orientation that were 

masked in the other diagrams. 

One more study was made toestablish the relation between the 

measured displacement and the 

deviation in orientation of the 

fracture from the strike of the 

topography. 

Fracture orientation and topographic strike in the upper 

Martin River valley (fig. 4A) 

have a regular relation. The 

cumulative curve rises smoothly 

and rapidly; on the histogram 

the median falls in the 20°-30° 

class and the model class is 0°-

100. The reasons that the central 

tendency values here are so close 

to the strike of the topography 

are that the stream channels approximately follow the strike of 

the topography, and the topographic gradient is significantly greater than that in the middle 

and lower parts of the valley. 

In the middle Martin River 

valley (fig. 4B), the median is 

in the 50°-60° class and the 

modal class is 60°-70°. The 

range in the histogram is 17.5 

percent (0.9-18.4 percent). 

The median value in the lower 

Martin River valley (fig. 4C) 

falls in the 40.o -50 o 'Class and 

the modal class is 50 o -60 o. In 

this part of the valley, the topographic gradient is approximately the same as in the middle 

part. The majority of the stream 

channels trend approximately 

55°-25° from the trend of the 

surface slope. Thus the local relief along the stream channels 

was the cause of more slumping 

than was due to the down-valley 

movement of alluvium due to 

slumping of the valley fill toward 

the sea. The orientation of the 

fractures deviates from the topographic strike more here than 

in the middle part of the valley 

where the stream-channel trends 

deviated from the topographic 

strike approximately 80 o and 

90° (fig. 4C). This seemingly 

anomalous condition may be explained by the fact that the middle Martin River valley is adjacent to the terminal moraine of 

the glacier, and drainage channels are less numerous than in 

the lower part of. the valley 

where a complex anastamosing 

of the river has developed. 

Data from the lower, middle, 

and upper valleys have been 

combined in figure 4D. A fairly 

smooth cumulative percent-freequency curve results, having a 

median value (50 percent) in the 

30°-40° class. The modal class 

is 0°-10°' the range being 7.8 

percent (15.1-7.3 percent). The 

perc en t-freq uency histogram 

shows that the number of fractures whose orientation diverges 
B6 

from the topographic strike is 

diminishing. However, this degree of agreement between the 

strike of the fractures and the 

strike of the topography does not 

indicate a rigorous correlation 

between the two in the alluvium. 

The limitations may be seen in 

the diagrams of the data obtained 

in the middle and especially 

in the lower Martin River valley. 

If a few feet (usually not more 

than 10 ft of free slope along 

present or abandoned stream 

channels is oriented in directions 

not parallel to the topographic 

strike, the. fractures which accomodate the loca) slumping of 

these streambanks more or less 

dominate the frequency-distribution diagrams (fig. 4B). It should 

be noted that the reason the 

cumulative curve for the valley 

as a whole (fig. 4D) agrees so 

closely with that for the upper 

part of the valley (fig. 4A) is 

that 70.3 percent of the· data 

shown for the entire valley comes 

from the upper part of the valley, 

and thus masks the data from 

the middle and lower sections. 

Three additional traverses 

made in the middle part of the 

valley, which are plotted on a 

detailed topographic sketch map 

(fig. 5), clearly demonstrate local relations that are masked in 

figure 4D. The data have been 

collected in classes of 200 feet of 

traverse length. The peaks on 

the graph indicate the increased 

frequency of fractures near 

streambanks, especially abandoned ones, and at interfaces between alluvium and bedrock. 

Areas of mudvent deposits indicate areas of greater frequency 

of fractures which could not be 

accurately counted because of 

the thickness of mud deposits. 

The histogram and cumulative 

curve of the traverse A-A1 is 

markedly bimodal. The median 

ALASKA EARTHQUAKE, MARCH 27, 1964 

80 >- 80 >- <.) <.) 

z z LLI LLI 

~ ~ 

0 60 0 60 LLI LLI 

0:: 0:: LL.. LL.. 

1- 1- z 40 z 40 LLI LLI <.) <.) 

0:: 0:: LLI LLI 

a.. a.. 20 20 

10 30 50 70 90 10 30 50 70 90 

DEVIATION, IN £>EGREES DEVIATION, IN DEGREES 

N=1025 N=257 

Stream channels trend S. 70"- Stream channels trend S. 54" E. 

as• w. and s. 20"-30" W. The and s. 35" w. The tapatopographic gradient is 60 ft graphic gradient is 32.2 ft 

per mile toward S. 68" W. and per mile toward S. 45" W. 

500ft per mile toward S. 22" E. 

A. Upper river valley B. Middle river valley 

100 100 

80 80 

>- >- <.) <.) 

z z LLI LLI 

~ ~ 60 0 60 ~ 0 LLI LLI 

0:: 0.J 0:: 

LL.. .... LL.. 

1- z 1- 40 z 40 z LLI LLI 

<.) <.) 

0:: 0:: 

LLI LLI 

a.. a.. 20 20 

0 

0 10 30 50 70 90 10 30 50 70 90 

DEVIATION, IN DEGREES DEVIATION, IN DEGREES 

N=179 N=1458 

Stream channels trend N. 45" W. D. Entire river valley 

and N. 75" W. The tapagraphic gradient is 13.4 ft per 

mile toward S. 78" W. 

C. Lower river valley 

4.-Histograms and cumulative curves of percent frequency of earthquakeinduced ground fractures in the Martin River valley. N =number of fractures. 

value falls in the 40 o -50 o class 

and the modal class is 0°-10°. 

The second largest class is 50°-

600 and is secondary by only 1.6 

percent (21.3-19.7 percent). The 

50 o -60 o class is large because 

of the number of fractures 

formed by the slumping along 

the former stream channel at the 

point 200-250 feet along the 

traverse, as indicated on the 

map. The cumulative curve rises 

slowly until the modal class of 

30 o -40 o is reached. The curve 

is relatively smooth and convex 

up to the 80°-90° class, where an 

upward deflection causes a concavity in the curve. The diagrams showing percent frequency with respect to deviation 
GEOMORPHIC EFFECTS, MARTIN-BERING RIVERS AREA 

-···---=:::::···· ·· ·· N 60°25'30" W.144°17'34" : .... ······· --·· ·· ···- · ---- - :: :- -~ 

16 

(/) 

w 

0:: 12 :J 

1-

u 

<( 

0:: 

"-

"- 8 0 

0:: 

w 

[Il 

::2: 

:J 4 z 

Traverse area, Middle Martin River Valley 

EXPLANATION 

Alluviun1 • 

Till 

Bedrock 

D 

Mudvent deposits 

• Water 

Contact 

--- /90---

Approximate contours 

Steep slopes 

Hachures on down swe 

A AI 

Line of traverse 

A 2 1000 A 1 2000 3ooo A 

DISTANCE ALONG TRAVERSE, IN FEET 

Frequency distribution of fractures along traverse 

>-

u 

z 

w 

80 

5 60 w 

0:: 

"-

1-

z 

w 

u 

0:: 

w 

a. 

40 

20 

Traverse A-A1 

(N=61) 

o~~ULLU~LU~~UL~llULU~~ 

>- u 

z 

w 

:J 

0 

w 

0:: 

"-

1-

z 

w 

u 

0:: 

w 

a. 

>- u 

z 

w 

:J 

0 

w 

0:: 

"-

1-

z 

w 

u 

0:: 

w 

a. 

80 

60 

40 

20 

0 

100 

80 

60 

40 

20 

0 10 30 50 70 

0 

DEVIATION , IN DEGREES 

Traverse A 1 -A2 

(N=44) 

10 30 50 70 

DEVIATION, IN DEGREES 

10 30 50 70 

DEVIATION, IN DEGREES 

90 

90 

90 

5.-Map, fracture-frequency diagram, a.nd series of histograms and cumulative percent-frequency curves for earthquake-induced ground fractures along three traverses in the middle Martin River valley. N=number of fractures. 

B7 
B8 

from topographic strike clearly 

indicate the relations between regional topographic gradient and 

local zones of high slope along 

stream channels as discrete factors controlling slumping. 

One other series of measurements was made in order to 

show the relation between the 

measured displacement between 

blocks and the deviation of orientation of the fractures from the 

topographic strike. The results 

are shown on figure 6. Displacement was defined as distance between the edges of blocks of alluvium, measured at right angles 

to the strike of the fracture separating the blocks. No measurements were made on fractures 

where mud emissions, caving, or 

washing of the fractures could 

be observed to have occurred. A 

total of 320 fractures and 550.7 

inches of displacement were 

measured. The median value 

ALASKA EARTHQUAKE, MARCH 27, 1964 

>- 80 u 

z 

w 

:J 

0 60 w 

Cl:: 

"-

fz 40 w 

u 

Cl:: 

w 

(l_ 20 

10 30 50 70 90 

DEVIATION , IN DEGREES 

6.-Histogram and cumulative curve 

of total measured displacement in relation to deviation from topographic 

strike for earthquake-induced ground 

fractures in the Martin River valley. 

falls in the 30°-40° class and 

the 10°-20° class is the modal 

class. 

The best example of the relation between free slopes along 

stream channels and earthquakeinduced ground fracture was 

photographed during a flight 

over the Copper River just west 

of the Martin-Bering Rivers area 

(fig. 7). The conditions observed 

in the Martin River valley were 

comparable, but not as extensive. 

The limitations for construction sites on outwash plains 

and alluvial areas were clearly 

demonstrated by the widespread 

occurrence of ground fractures. 

MUDVENT DEPOSITS 

As with ground fractures, 

mudvent deposits are frequently 

reported as common consequences of earthquakes on unlithified water-saturated sediments. They have been called 

"sand blows," "silt volcanoes," 

"sand ridges," and "mud volcanoes" and have been described 

by many investigators (Bramhall, 1938; Broadhead, 1902; 

Byerly, 1942; Coombs and 

7.-Earthquake-induced ground fractures in Copper River delta several miles west of the Ragged Mountains, showing 

relation to streams and former drainages. 
GEOMORPHIC EFFECTS, MARTIN-BERING RIVERS AREA 

Banksdale, 1942; Dobrovolny 

B9 

and Lemke, 1961; Housner, 

1958; Macelwane, 1947; Morse, 

1941; Shepard, 1905; Slemmons, 

1957; Steinbrugge and Moran, 

1956; Tarr and Martin, 1912; 

and Tocher , 1956). Housner 

(1958) discussed the mechanism 

by which ground water is forced 

to, and frequently above, the 

ground surface and by which 

sediment carried with it is deposited in the immediate area 

of egress. The process is initiated 

during an earthquake by grain 

adjustments which cause pressure gradients in .the ground 

water-a mechanism analagous 

to piping. The mudvent deposits 

range in grain size from cobbles 

to clay (figs. 8, 9). The area 

studied for ground fractures included a large field in which deposits from mudvents were more 

than 3 feet thick in places. Because of the great range in grain 

size observed in the sediments, 

the term "mud" has been employed rather than one having a 

specific grain-size connotation. 

A section was dug through a 

large mudvent deposit in the area 

mapped. The grain size of sediments and the central coarsegrained core are shown in figure 

10 (next page). 

All the mudvent deposits we 

saw issued from earthquake-induced ground fractures. 

In the Martin-Bering Rivers 

area, the mudvent deposits were 

concentrated in the third of the 

valley adjacent to the valley 

walls because of the general direction of slumping toward the 

valley centers. This preferential 

distribution was not observed on 

the Copper River delta where 

mudvents seemed to occur in an 

unsystematic fashion. 

8.-Mudvent deposits in upper Martin River valley. Cracks resulted from 

differential compaction. 
BlO ALASKA EARTHQUAKE, MARCH 27, 1964 

9.-Mudvent deposits in upper Martin River valley. Cracks resulted from differential compaction due to grain-size 

variation. 

1' 

0 

1' 

3 

1 2 

I 

I I 

A 

VERT ICAL EXAGGERATION X 4 

Clay 

5, '3 

4 

I 

8 

4 2 .. 

'1 

5 

I 

10 •9 

,7 6'i18 Sand '--------''--"-"---------------' Silt 

6 78 

I 10 11 

I I 12 

I 11 

Silt and clay 

A 

•• 8 

Gravel '-------------- Sand 

10.-Cross section of a mudvent deposit in the upper Martin River valley and diagrams showing grain-size percentages of 

samples taken from the deposit. 
GEOMORPHIC EFFECTS, MARTIN-BERING RIVERS AREA Bll 

11.-Earthquake-fountain crater in upper Martin River valley. Gravel in foreground is in drainage channel. 

Mudvent deposits are fairly 

resistant to erosion. Several 

heavy rainstorms which lasted 

for as long as 4 days had little 

effect on them. The deposits, 

therefore, may survive as discrete sedimentary units, if they 

become covered by other sediments. 

EARTHQUAKE-FOUNTAIN 

CRATERS 

Associated with the mudvent 

deposits were craters from which 

large amounts of water had 

issued. The grain size of the 

sediments in the bowls of these 

craters usually ranged from 

coarse sand to medium gravel. 

The flow of water from earthquake fountains must have been 

greater than from the mudvents 

in order to effect such a difference in grain size. The deposits 

differed both from the underlying alluvial gravel, sand, and 

silt, and from the mudvent deposits in which they occurred. 

Most of the craters were 2-3 

feet deep and 4-8 feet across 

(fig. 11) . Drainage channels lead 

away from these craters. In the 

area studied (fig. 2), the distributary channels cut through 

many of the mudvent ridges. In 

two places, mudvent ridges 

crossed the drainages, but were 

not even slightly eroded. Thus, 

the craters were contemporaneous with the mudvents, and 

they formed in less time than 

was required to deposit the mudvent fields. 

If Hausner's theory (1958) 

about the formation of mudvents is correct, this groundwater activity would have started shortly after the earthquake 

began and would not have continued long after the earthquake 

ceased. 

SUBSIDENCE CRATERS 

Several circular subsidence 

craters were seen at various 

places. One, in the upper Martin 

River valley (fig. 12, next page), 

about 14 feet in diameter, 5 feet 

in depth, and conical in shape. It 

was on a strip of alluvium that 

was a few feet higher than the 

surrounding area and was covered by moss and a few alder 

shrubs, 4-5 years old. The moss 

remained in a nearly normal 

growing position in the bottom 

of the cone. No evidence could be 
B12 ALASKA EARTHQUAKE, MARCH 27, 1964 

12.-Subsidence crater in upper Martin River valley. 

13.- Subsidence craters in mudvent deposits, western Copper River delta. Arrows indicate en echelon orientation. 
GEOMORPHIC EFFECTS, MARTIN-BERING RIVERS AREA B13 

14.-Small mudcones on rain-pocked mudvent deposits in upper Martin River valley. 

found to indicate that water had 

flowed from the depression. 

In the middle Martin River 

valley, away from the terminal 

moraine of the Martin River 

glacier, three conical depressions 

were observed in unvegetated 

alluvium. These depressions 

were about 20-25 feet in diameter and about 8 feet in depth. 

Caving of the sides had filled 

the bottoms of the depressions 

to form a flat area about 3-4 

feet in diameter. No evidence 

could be found tha,t water had 

flowed from these depressions 

either. Unlike the depression in 

the upper valley which was filled 

with wate.r, the three in the 

middle valley were above the 

ground-water table. The three 

depressions were alined about 

N. 20° W. and were approximately 150-200 feet apart. A 

similal' series of four water-filled 

linear depressions were ob.served 

from the air on the west side of 

the Copper River delta (fig. 13). 

These Copper River depressions 

were intimately associated with 

mudvent deposits. 

Subsidence craters seem to 

have formed by the subsurface 

migration of fine-grained sediments away from the area of the 

depressions as a result of groundwater flow, or they may have 

formed by consolidation of 

loosely compacted alluvium in 

zones formerly occupied by ice 

blocks. 

MUDCONES 

Small mudcones (fig. 14) were 

very minor and infrequent features. These cones were deposited by slowly flowing springs 

at the end of mudvent deposition. 

Slight variation in grain size 

within the cones indicates that 

the water flow, responsible for 

the deposition of the features, 

fluctuated. 

AVALANCHES 

The term "snow avalanche" is 

used here to describe high-speed 

falls and flows composed primarily of snow. The term "rock 

avalanche" is used to describe 

falls, slides, and flows, composed 

primarily of rock fragments, but 

observed rock avalanches contained some snow. In two of the 

rock avalanches studied, snow 

avalanches clearly preceded the 

fall of rock material and made up 
B14 ALASKA EARTHQUAKE, MARCH 27, 1964 

15.-Camp and Sioux glacier slides. Medial moraine on Sioux glacier darker than fresh rock-avalanche debris. 

about 75 percent of the total 

thickness of the avalanche termini (fig. 15). Most of the rock 

avalanches started high on the 

valley walls. 

SNOW AVALANCHES 

Because the Alaska earthquake 

occurred at the end of March, 

nearly optimum conditions for 

snow avalanching existed. The 

intensity of the earthquake was 

so great that it undoubtedly provided one of the most dynamic 

triggers ever applied to the 

slopes. The great majority of 

potential avalanche corridors 

probably were activated during 

the Alaskan earthquake. 

All the snow avalanches observed in the field or identified 

from aerial photographs taken 

by the Arctic Institute of North 

America shortly after the earthquake, are shown in figures 16 

and 17. The rock-coated snow 

avalanches indicate snow-avalanche corridors. A snowfall that 

occurred in the area the day after 

the earthquake undoubtedly obscured many smaller avalanches 

which thus escaped notice. Despite its incompleteness, the compilation shown on figures 16 and 

17 should be of service to engineers who may be called upon to 

choose highway, railroad, or 

building sites in the area. 

Snow avalanches and winds 

generated by them severely damaged adjacent forests. A stripped 

area 100-150 feet wide around 

the terminus of Camp slide 

(sees. 16 and 17, T. 16 S., R. 

6 E., fig. 16) is presumed to 

have been caused by avalanchegenerated winds (fig. 15). One 

25-foot-long 24-inch-diameter 

Sitka spruce tree was impaled 

in the avalanche snow and rock 

debris in an inverted position, 

presumably by the force of these 

winds. 

An almost continuous fall of 

rock from the upper slopes in the 

Chugach Mountains during June 

prevented us from thoroughly 

examining the upper two-thirds 

of any of the avalanche bodies. 

The stratigraphy of the Sioux 

glacier avalanche showed that 

the snow avalanches preceded 

the rock avalanches. Randomly 

oriented blocks of stratified snow 

were observed in the pedestal 

upon which the rock debris 
GEOMORPHIC EFFECTS, MARTIN-BERING RIVERS AREA 

16.-Generalized distribution of avalanches caused by the March 27, 1964, earthquake in the Martin-Bering Rivers area. Avalanches are shown in black. Inset 

a r ea is shown in detail on the next page. 

815 
R. 5 E. 144 ° 22'30" R. 6 E. 

T.15 S. ~"~c_,~J~l~~~~ \I I~ {//£.-4:.' ~ ~ V ~~~I!/, 55 2::/LJ /1 ll 1"· ~/llVIIiiSIJI'_ I!R! ~l ' I'V'~ -:'> lfl ii/1 !'7~ " ;-w·r I 

T. 16 S. 

17.-Avalanches in the Chugach Mountains near the Martin River glacier, 1964. Area within the heavy lines is covered by postearthquake aerial photographs. 

bj 

!""' 

~ 

~ > 1:'/l 

~ 

> 

~ 

~ 

.0 = 

~ ~ 

~t<:l 

~ 

> 

~ 

(') 

= to:) 

:'I 

,_. 

<J:) 

a> 

""' 
GEOMORPHIC EFFECTS, MARTIN-BERING RIVERS AREA B17 

rested. Rock debris of the medial 

moraine beneath the avalanche 

snow could be distinguished from 

fresh rock-avalanche debris by 

its darker color. 

ROCK AVALANCHES 

The source areas of the rock 

avalanches could not be examined because of the previously 

mentioned fall of rock throughout the month of June. While 

impressive, these later rockfalls 

delivered only minor quantities 

of material to the valley floors 

when compared with the massive 

deposits which came down during the earthquake. Observation 

through binoculars and an examination of the avalanche debris indicated that the source 

area was intensely jointed granodiorite. 

Rock debris on the Sioux glacier made up approximately onefourth of the terminal thickness 

of the avalanche body. The area 

of the slide was approximately 

1.2 square miles and the estimated averag-e thickness was 10 

feet. Thus approximately 33 X 106 

cubic yards of material (9X106 

cubic yards of rock and the 

balance snow) was added to 

the surface of the glacier. The 

rock debris on the Sioux glacier 

slide consisted of an assortment 

of bedrock rubble ranging in 

grain size from fine sand to 

blocks having median diameters 

to 20 feet. 

The Camp slide had a stratigraphy similar to that of the 

Sioux glacier slide, but vegetative debris was included in the 

avalanche because forested areas 

were involved (fig. 18). The 

Sioux glacier and Camp slides 

were probably air-layer lubricated phenomena of the type described by Shreve (1965, p. 151). 

As figure 17 shows, the rock 

avalanches were concentrated in 

18.- A valanche debris of Camp slide viewed from distal margin. Arrows indicate source areas of rock debris. 
B18 ALASKA EARTHQUAKE, MARCH 27, 1964 

N 

A ' A 

'~' "" 20 ---- ~--- 20 

C' c METERS D' D METERS E' E 

0~ rr 0~ /f' 0~ >7 ~~~"m" "tdl" VERTICAL EXAGGERATION 

"~" APPROXIMATELY X 6 "~" EXPLANATION 

Lake bottom in 1963 0 1 Kl LOM ETER 

Lake bottom in 1964 BATHYM ETRIC CO NTOURS A RE IN M ETER S 

19.-Map of Tokun Lake showing ba thymetry and profiles of bottom configurations in 1963 and 1964. 
GEOMORPHIC EFFECTS, MARTIN-BERING RIVERS AREA Bl9 

the Chugach Mountains near 

Sioux glacier. Unusually severe 

snow avalanching, but surprisingly little rock avalanching, occurred in the Tertiary foothills 

and the Ragged Mountains. 

Slopes in the Ragged Mountains 

are as steep as those in the Chugach Mountains, but valley configurations are different. The 

Chugach Mountains have been 

extensively glaciated by valley 

glaciers and all the valleys leading into the Martin River valley 

are U-shaped. The foothills have 

been recently glaciated only 

northeast of Kushtaka, Tokun, 

and Charlotte Lakes (fig. 17). 

Slopes are much more gentle in 

the foothills than in either the 

Chugach or the Ragged Mountains. 

The Martin River valley follows the presumed trace of the 

Saint Elias-Chugach fault. It is 

possible that a complexly fractured zone in the trace of the 

fault acted as a damper to the 

earthquake shock waves. Thus 

the smaller number of rock avalanches in the Ragged Mountains 

and the foothills could perhaps 

be explained by the absence of as 

severe a trigger mechanism. 

Local faulting in the area of 

Sioux glacier is also a possibility, 

but we observed no evidence to 

support this idea. 

DUST 

A secondary effect of the rock 

avalanches throughout the Chugach Mountains was the deposition of a dust coat on the glaciers. The distribution of these 

dust coats as observed in the field 

and from the air during June and 

early July is indicated on figure 

16. 

SUBAQUEOUS LANDSLIDES 

Lakes in the Martin-Bering 

Rivers area have been divided 

into two types on the basis of 

their bathymetric configuration. 

Lakes of the first type have 

slopes of about 10° or more 

around most of their shorelines 

and have average depths of 70-

120 feet. Their bottoms are relatively flat. Tokun Lake, Lake 

Charlotte, and Kushtaka Lake 

are examples of this type. The 

second type of lake is extremely 

shallow throughout, depths rarely exceeding 6 feet. These lakes 

have been filled by outwash sediments from either the Martin or 

the Bering River. Bering Lake 

and Martin Lake are examples. 

Little Martin Lake is intermediate between the two types. The 

western half of the lake is filled 

by outwash sediments from the 

Martin River to within 6-15 feet 

of its surface, and the eastern 

half attains depths of 50 feet. 

Slopes in the eastern part of the 

lake are as high as 18 o. 

Subaqueous landslides occurred in the deltaic sediments of 

all lakes of the first type. The 

most detailed study was made of 

Tokun Lake (fig. 19). The western shore of Tokun Lake consists 

of outwash sediments and in 1963 

had a very low gradient. The 

north ·and south shores are steep 

and are composed of angular 

boulders and cobbles. Three 

streams enter Tokun Lake and 

have formed deltas having steep 

distal faces. All these deltas slid 

-presumably triggered by the 

earthquake. The largest slide in 

Tokun Lake involved the sediments deposited by Tokun Creek 

in the eastern quarter of the lake. 

The landslides genera ted 

waves which fractured lake ice 

and modified the shores by overturning many flagstones along 

the southwestern shore. Algae 

which normally grow on the upper surface of submerged rocks 

were found on the lower side of 

these rocks, and dead aquatic insect pupae and larvae were observed on their upper surface. 

Lake ice and water set in motion 

by the subaqueous landslides in 

the opposite (eastern) end of the 

lake probably overturned the 

flagstones. 

Lake Charlotte has six inlet 

streams. The largest of these is 

the melt-water distributary from 

the Lake Charlotte lobe of the 

Martin River glacier at the 

northeastern end of the lake; a 

large subaqueous slide in its delta 

lengthened the shoreline 80 feet 

and increased the area of the lake 

by approximately 5.1 X 104 square 

feet (2.1 percent of the 1962 

area) . In 1962 the shoreline 

was 29,385 feet in length. The 

sliding of the delta front of the 

outwash plain at the northeast end of the lake increased the 

shoreline by 165 feet. The sliding 

of other deltas built out into the 

lake reduced the shoreline by 120 

feet so that the 1964 shoreline 

measured 29,430 feet. The bathymetric changes which occurred 

in the northeast part of the lake 

are shown in figure 20 (next 

page). 

At the extreme southeastern 

end of the shore a delta of angular gravel and sand slid. Mature 

Sitka spruce trees remained upright and rooted in the proximal 

part of the subaqueous slidethe upper parts of their trunks 

remaining above the surface of 

the lake. 
B20 

N 

A 

0 

10 

20 

ALASKA EARTHQUAKE, MARCH 27, 1964 

1962"-// 

- J .........._ ____________ ___..... 

I 

I 

I 

EXPLANATION 

Bathymetric contour in 1964 

Bathymetric contour in 1962 

A' 

10 

20 

30~-------------------------------------------------------L30 

VERTICAL EXAGGERATION X 5 

100 0 100 200 METERS 

BATHYMETRIC CONTOURS ARE IN METERS 

20.-Bathymetric map and profiles showing bottom configurations in northeast part of Lake 

Charlotte in 1962 and 1964. 
GEOMORPHIC EFFECTS, MARTIN-BERING RIVERS AREA B21 

A wave generated by this slide 

caused lake ice to strike the boles 

of trees and scuff and strip off 

the bark 3-6 feet above the scarp 

of the slump, and approximately 

11 feet above the July 6 water 

level. 

All the other deltas in Lake 

Charlotte slid. The one formed 

by the stream which drains the 

lake at an altitude of 319 feet, 

north of Lake Charlotte, modified the bathymetry of the central part of the lake. 

Kushtaka Lake, like Lake 

Charlotte is formed behind a 

terminal moraine' and is fed by 

melt-water streams from the 

Kushtaka lobe of the Martin 

River glacier. In late July 1963 

the delta formed by this drainage 

had slopes (based on depths 100 

meters from shore) as high as 

11 o. The entire front of this 

delta slid, and slopes were 

changed to about 40° by this one 

subaqueous landslide. Figure 21 

shows the bathymetric modifications of the northern end of 

Kushtaka Lake and the front of 

the delta. 

The shallow lakes of the second 

type exhibited some settling of 

gravel bars and deltas, but 

showed no indication of subaqueous slides. The lack of steep free 

slopes on the distal faces of these 

bars and deltas no doubt explains 

their stability even during what 

must have been .rather severe 

shaking. 

TURBIDITY CHANGES IN 

LAKES ON THE MARTIN 

RIVER GLACIER 

The present ice margin of the 

Martin River glacier is mantled 

by superglacial drift over most 

of its area. The distal half mile 

or so in sees. 22, 25-27, 35, and 

36, T. 16 S., R. 6 E.; sees. 30-34, 

T. 16 S., R. 7 E.; and parts of 

A A' 

20 

"~"""'"" " / 20 

40 '\. -- ~-- 40 

EXPL ANAT ION 

Lake bottom in 1963 

Lake bottom in 1964 

B B' 

0 ~/- 0 METERS 

20 20 

40 40 

VERTICAL EXAGGERATION X 18 

2 KILO METERS 

BATH Y M ET'-R-'-1 C-'-C-'-0 N..LT-'-0 U- R-S -A-R E,----'1 N M ET E RS 

21.-Bathymetric map and profiles 

showing bottom configurations of the 

northern part of Kushtaka Lake in 

1963 and 1964. 

the Kushtaka Lake lobe are covered with spruce and alder 

growths. The forested area is 

studded with ice-basin lakes that 

have become insulated by drift, 

to a greater or lesser degree, 

from the underlying glacier ice. 

The water of some of these lakes 

had become clear and temperate 

by 1962 and contained aquatic 

vegetation and animals. 

When surface ice melted from 

these lakes in June 1964, several 

were observed, from the air, to 

have become turbid (fig. 22, next 

page). The insulating drift on 

the east shore of Black Lake 

(NE%, NE% sec. 35 and NW%, 

NW1,4 sec. 36, T. ~6 S., R. 7 E.) 

was only 6 feet thick in 1963. The 

exposure of the underlying dead 

glacier ice by slumping of the 

drift mantle caused turbid meltwater to enter many of the formerly clear lakes along the glacial 

margin. 

The turbidity increase, is estimated at no more than 50-100 

ppm (parts per million) of suspended material. Though this increase is well below the turbidity 

levels of ice-walled sinkhole lakes 

and proglacial lakes in the area, 

it will have an unfavorable effect 

upon both the flora and fauna of 

the lakes. If drift accumulates 

and retards melting of the ice, 

little permanent damage to 

plants and animals is likely, but 

several seasons of such turbid 

conditions would return the lakes 

to a low state of ecologic complexity-a state equivalent to 

that at Kushtaka Lake, Lake 

Charlotte, and the unnamed lake 

at an altitude of 319 feet north of 

Lake Charlotte (Tuthill, 1963). 

FILLING OF ICE-WALLED 

SINKHOLES 

In 1962 several ice-walled 

sinkhole lakes on the Lake Charlotte lobe of the Martin River 

glacier were drained of water 

(Reid and Clayton, 1963). Four 

of these lake basins were empty 

in July of 1963, but in June 1964 

two were partially filled with 

water. No ice had formed on the 

surface of these two lakes as it 

had on the adjacent sinkhole 

lakes which were full of water in 

July 1963. This lack of winter 

ice indicates that the filling of 

the lake basins had occurred in 

late spring because water would 

not have been available until 

ablation had begun; had blockage of the subglacial drainage 

occurred in the fall, the lake 

would have been ice covered. 

These lake basins probably 

were sealed during the earth-
B22 ALASKA EARTHQUAKE, MARCH 27, 1964 

22.-Lakes in dead ice and at the margin of active ice of the Martin River glacier. Black Lake in lower right and the 

two lakes in the extreme lower left were clear water bodies in 1962 and 1963, and contained well-established aquatic flora 

and fauna. Icebergs in the marginal lake were slightly more numerous than in 1962 and 1963. 

quake by readjustment of rock 

debris in the moulins by which 

the lakes were drained in 1962. 

The lakes drained subglacially 

on July 7 and caused floods on 

the narrow outwash plain at the 

head of Lake Charlotte. 

GRAVEL-COATED SNOW 

CONES 

Nine conical mounds of alluvium were observed near the outlet of Martin Lake in the lower 

Martin River valley where there 

had been no mounds in July 1963 

(fig. 23). The largest cone was 

51;2 feet high and had a basal 

diameter of 15 feet. In addition, 

three 8-inch-thick flat circular 

bodies of gravel having 3- to 5-

inch-wide peripheral rims of wellsorted large pebbles (fig. 24) 

were observed; apparently they 

were residues of melted-out snow 

cones. All the conical mounds 

had circular aprons rimmed by 

bands of well-sorted large pebbles. 

The conical mounds contained 

central cores of snow under a 

layer of unsorted sand and gravel 

of a type common to this part of 

the Martin River valley (fig. 25, 

p. B24). 

The mounds were on the northeastern bank of the outlet of 

Martin Lake in NW% sec. 13, T. 

17 S., R. 4 E. (Cordova B-2 

quadrangle). The opposite bank 

is formed by talus from the 

Ragged Mountains. Snow of an 

eroded avalanche stood approximately 15 feet above the southeastern bank, opposite the snow 

cones. The gravel surrounding 

the snow cones was littered with 

avalanche debris such as broken 

tree trunks and branches, and 

had vague lineations normal to 

the drainages of the area (that 

is, deposited from the southwest). 

Earthquake-induced ground 

fractures and mudvent deposits 

crossed the apron of one cone 

and the alluvium between the 

various cones. This feature and 

the occurrence of an unusual 

number of avalanches and rockfalls in the general area indicate 

that the mechanism which 

formed these gravel-coated snow 

cones was the result of the 

Alaska earthquake. 
GEOMORPHIC EFFECTS, MARTIN-BERING RIVERS AREA B23 

23.-Gravel-covered snow cones. Arrows indicate flood-plain debris covered by gravel only on the southwest sides. This 

feature supports the idea that gravel was deposited in a northeast direction. Avalanche snow in background. Geologist is 

standing on the northeast bank of Martin Lake outlet stream. 

24.-Circular bodies of unsorted gravel rimmed with large well-sorted pebbles. Note raised "stone net." Snow cone behind 

geologist has a circular apron which is also rimmed by large pebbles. Arrows indicate pebble rim. 
B24 ALASKA EARTHQUAKE, MARCH 27, 1964 

25.-Partially melted snow cone. Arrow at A indicates place where gravel coating has been removed to show snow interior. B indicates fresh avalanche debris. 

The sequence of events outlined below seems to best explain 

the conditions observed in the 

field (fig. 26): 

1. The earthquake shock dislodged snow on the northeast flank of the Ragged 

Mountains and caused an 

avalanche which flowed toward the north down a 

couloir. 

2. The avalanche struck the 

Martin Lake outlet stream, 

which may or may not have 

been frozen over. 

3. Large amounts of water, 

sand, and gravel were 

splashed out of the riverbed and onto a preexisting 

snow drift on the northeast 

bank of the river. 

4. The avalanche-driven water 

and alluvium eroded the 

snow drift into several discrete units which were covered by gravel and sand. 

5. The sand and gravel retarded 

ablation of the snow interiors. 

6. The largest pebbles rolled 

down the sides of the cones 

when the cones were at 

their maximum size and 

formed the rim of wellsorted large pebbles. 

The pebble rims were easily 

distinguished in the field at the 

end of June 1964, but they probably will not be preserved. 

LAKE-ICE FRACTURE 

All the lakes in the area had 

fractured surface ice on June 2, 

1964. Mr. Lester New of Cordova 

(see p. 2) stated that the ice 

of Bering Lake stacked up 

against the north shore. Geologists who flew over the area 

shortly after the earthquake reported that fracturing of lake ice 

was general in the area. 

The movement of ice on Bering 

Lake was evidently the result of 

uplift of the region. A seiche 

type of wave must have formed 

which caused the piling up of ice 

blocks. 

26.-Idealized diagram showing sequence of events suggested as the 

mechanism of formation for the 

gravel-covered snow cones in the Martin River valley (not to scale). A, 

Snowcovered Ragged Mountains and 

snow drift on northeast side of Martin 

Lake outlet stream. B, Earthquake 

triggers large avalanche which 

splashed water and alluvium from bed 

of Martin Lake outlet onto snow drift. 

C, Gravel-covered remnants of the 

snow drift melted slowly. Because of 

their higher momentum, large pebbles 

were dislodged from slopes of cone and 

collected at the position of greatest 

basal diameter. 
I' 

-.1 

r- 1 -.} 

' -.1 ' -.1 r- 1\ -.1 

L. '7 ..J I' 1--

:> v < .:. ..J ' .... < v r- v v 7 -.1 -l '-- -;-

v -.1 ~ .,.. {\ v -j r;- 1\ 

_,-" \ .J L- /\..J" L ..J < \.- " L1' \.- "::,. 1\ -l" _), 

-Jr-v'L-v -1-1 

GEOMORPHIC EFFECTS, MARTIN-BERING RIVERS AREA 

N 

_,.(-l.J <' ,_ .:./1-.~rv..J 

~:(~~~;!:~~!~~~~~~~ 

D 

Snow Alluvium 

A 

B 

EXPLANATION 

~/.2d 

li1li1liUiillll 

Water and 

stream-gravel splash 

Bedrock and 

talus 

B25 
B26 

EVIDENCE OF REGIONAL 

UPLIFT 

Despite search for evidence 

that the lakes of the area had 

tilted, none was found. Clearly, 

the entire Bering Lake area had 

been raised-a rim of newly exposed land could be seen around 

the entire lake and the area of 

the lake was greatly reduced. In 

1962 and 1963 Bering Lake was 

intertidal, in that water-level 

fluctuations of approximately 18 

inches occurred between tides. 

Large mudflats in the southern 

and eastern parts of the former 

lake basin are now above water 

level (fig. 16). 

In the Martin River valley the 

streams have shifted their channels to a greater or lesser degree. 

In the middle of the upper Martin 

River valley the main channel 

shifted to a former flood channel 

north of the 1963 channel. In 

early June, flow of water was 

divided between the new and the 

old channels. As the season progressed, the new channel was 

eroded sufficiently to command 

most of the flow. 

ALASKA EARTHQUAKE, MARCH 27, 1964 

In the upper and middle Martin River valley, only this one 

diversion could be identified because the variations in river 

stage during a summer are extremely great. Subglacial drainage of ice-walled sinkhole lakes 

on the Martin River glacier and 

variation in amounts of water 

produced by melting or rain from 

day to day makes flash flooding 

a common occurrence. No data 

exist by which normal river 

levels or channels can be determined, and it is our opinion that 

variations are so great that such 

data would not be useful. 

In June 1964 the distributary 

streams in the lower Martin 

River valley were cutting new 

channels in the centers of the 

1963 channels. The clear-water 

streams from Tokun Lake and 

Martin Lake were not invaded by 

glacial melt water from the 

Martin River as they had been in 

1963. By July 6, 1964, no meltwater had entered Little Martin 

Lake, where usually the water 

became turbid during the melting 

season because of the mixing of 

melt water from the Martin 

River with the clear lake water. 

The drainage modifications 

may not have been wholly due 

to uplift. The spring season arrived much later in 1964 than in 

the previous two years. Lake ice 

and snow in the forests remained 

fully three weeks longer in 1964 

than it had in 1962 or 1963. Thus 

the ablation of snow and glacier 

ice probably did not reach its 

peak until after we had left the 

field. 

FAULTING 

No evidence was found that 

the Chugach-Saint Elias, Ragged 

Mountain, or any of the previously mapped structures in the Tertiary foothills (Martin, 1908; 

Miller, 1951) had been reactivated by the earthquake. The 

concentration of rock avalanches 

in the area of Sioux glacier may 

have been associated with local 

surface faulting, but the bedrock 

source areas of these avalanches 

could not be examined closely. 

That the area was involved in 

a large regional uplift is apparent 

from changes in mean tide levels, 

but the inland extent of this uplift has not been determined. 

EFFECTS OF THE EARTHQUAKE UPON ANIMAL POPULATIONS 

Several reactions to the earthquake by the animal population 

were either observed or reported 

to us. The absolute assignment 

of the observed phenomena to 

earthquake effects is not possible 

in all places because the patterns 

of animal behavior in this area 

are not well known and because 

our observations were no more 

than casual. 

MIGRATORY FISH 

Salmon is an important economic resource in the MartinBering Rivers area. In June and 

July, red or sockeye salmon 

spawn in great numbers in Lake 

Charlotte, in the unnamed lake at 

an altitude of 319 feet north of 

Lake Charlotte, and in Deadwood 

Lake. Their seasonal occupancy 

of Tokun, Little Martin, Martin, 

Kushtaka, and Bering Lakes has 

long been known. 

In 1963 salmon in the red 

phase were observed entering 

Tokun Lake. No "bright" (silvery) fish were seen. In 1964 the 

fact that all but one of the several thousand fish observed in the 

lake were "bright" indicates that 

they had just arrived from salt 

water and had not taken a long 

time to migrate to the spawning 

beds. This shorter migration 

time gave the fish more time for 

the spawn and should have insured the optimum chance of a 

successful spawn. 

We suggest that the clearing 

of the water of the outlet 

streams farther down valley by 

the downcutting of the Martin 

River-probably a result of the 
GEOMORPHIC EFFECTS, MARTIN-BERING RIVERS AREA B27 

uplift of the area-was responsible for the more rapid progress 

of fish migrating from the sea. 

Thus the effects of the Alaska 

earthquake may have helped 

rather than hurt future salmon 

crops in this area. 

LAND SNAILS 

Mr. Rae Baxter of the Alaska 

Department of Fish and Game at 

Cordova stated (oral commun., 

1964) that large numbers of 

land snails were trapped in earthquake-induced ground fractures 

in the area of Mirror and Martin 

Sloughs on the Copper River 

delta. The snails evidently fell into the fractures and could not 

climb out because of the granular 

nature of the sediments and the 

unstable sides of the fractures. 

In the vegetated delta of Lake 

Charlotte and Kushtaka Lake the 

land-snail fauna were destroyed · 

by the subaqueous landslides. The 

geomorphic adjustments to the 

earthquake probably had. a significant detrimental effect upon 

land-snail populations throughout the Martin-Bering Rivers 

area. Because the vegetation of 

the lake deltas in the area was 

largely grasses and other low 

plants, the greatest population 

density of land snails observed 

in 1962 and 1963 was in these 

very areas around the lakesareas which were most affected by earthquake-triggered 

subaqueous landslides. 

FUR-BEARING ANIMALS 

Mr~ Lester New of Cordova, 

who was trapping in the Bering 

Lake area at the time of the 

earthquake, states (written commun., Apr. 10, 1965), 

* * * * it [the earthquake] raised the 

country [the Bering Lake area] so 

much it pushed the beaver right up 

out of the water, where there was 

water left. Hundreds of big fivebeaver houses pushed right up out of 

the water, their entrance ways as 

much as four feet above the water 

line. The beaver are gone now. 

Whether they were killed or left the 

area I won't know until I go in to town 

May 15 [1965 ]. Then I will check with 

the Fish and Game Dept. to find out 

what has really happened to the 

beaver. I think they were killed. I 

have had a very good season [1965] on 

other furs such as mink, otter, and 

wolverine, they apparently were not 

affected by the quake * * *. 

While we were camped in the 

upper Martin River valley in 

early June a mature beaver wandered into our camp. It was investigating the many distributary stream channels of the upper Martin River as if looking for 

a place to build a dam. When it 

came within a few yards of our 

camp we noticed its tail was cut 

through in three places. At the 

time, we assumed that it had 

been driven out of a lodge by its 

elders, and we attached no importance to its appearance in the 

valley. In light of Mr. New's 

statement, the migration of this 

individual may have been associated with the earthquake rather 

than with the normal pattern of 

behavior of a beaver-lodge population. 

TESTIMONY OF THE ONLY 

RESIDENT OF THE AREA 

As far as we discovered, Mr. 

New was the only resident of the 

area at the time of the earthquake. In reply to a request for 

his recollections, Mr. New sent 

us the information given below. 

He states in a covering letter 

that these recollections were 

taken from the notebook which 

he customarily keeps while in 

"the bush." The following excerpt, slightly edited, is from a 

note written shortly after the 

earthquake: 

At 5:32 p.m. the cabin and everything in it all but exploded. It hit 

very hard. The cabin raunched sideways several feet [to the east (oral 

commun., July 1 1965)] the first jolt, 

then the second seemed to raunch it 

back the other way. Everything was 

flying that was loose or could be 

loosened. Utensils, gas lamps, frying 

pans, everything was in the air. The 

first thought that came to my mind 

was, 'This is what I have been dreading, that ominous feeling of doom I 

had had all day long. Now just what 

in the world is happening?' Glancing 

out the window I looked into solid ice, 

the lake had busted and stacked ice a 

lot higher than my cabin and it was 

moving in. I jumped for the door and 

was thrown down by the gyrations of 

the cabin. It was much rougher than 

being on a seine boat in very rough 

water. When I did get on my feet, I 

kicked the door open, figuring on the 

ice coming on into the cabin. Outside 

there wasn't a breath of air stirring, 

yet all the trees were gripped in a 

frenzy, as though they were in a hurricane gale. The ice had come against 

the shore and now it was piling up off 

shore like levees or break waters. 

Looking across the lake over to Hamilton M t. to the east everything was 

in movement. Hamilton Mt. to the 

east, Tokun Ridge to the north, and 

the Ragged Mt. Range to the west. 

Looking south at the Chilkat M t. 

Range, everything seemed to be moving. All the Sawtooth Range seemed 

to be hinged and was in one great up 

and down movement. There were huge 

rock slides and all the canyons were 

filled with rock and ice. Then it became deathly quiet, ·except for the 

booming of giant boulders moving off 

the high mountain ranges. For several 

minutes this continued, then all was 

quiet. 
B28 

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