Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1895-11-07
City and County.
GEOLOGICAL FORMATION.
Vestiges of the Ice Age in Augusta
and Vicinity.
Interesting Meeting OF the Kennebec Antigua
rian and Historical Society.

The first meeting OF the season of the
kennebec Antiquarian and Historical
Society was held, Tuesday evening, and a
paper read by Dr. W. Scott Hill, on the
|"Vestiges of the Ice Age in Augusta, and
Vicinity A discussion followed in
which very valuable opinions were ex-
pressed by the members present, great in
terest being shown in the subject.
DR.. Hills paper read as follows:
How many centuries or ages have
elapsed sncu the cold period covered the
whole of Maine with one vast sheet of ice
il mere conjecture. 1t is known that in
| that period the ice sheet extended from
the Arctic regions to thousand or more
miles south of us. The evidences are that
period of warmth succeeded it which
caused rapid melting of the SHOWS and
| ice, leaving glaciers which were identical
| In their action on the earth and what are
now river courses, with those still in
existence in Europe. Commencing with
this ice sheet we may say that the general
trend of it, in this vicinity, was southerly
or southwesterly rs shown by its mark
on the highest lands are found two kinds
of markings-finc sharp lines, called
strie, and deep broad grooves, smooth
and polished When we consider that
this ice cap which covered the State of
Maine was probably thousands of feet in
thickness, we can have some faint idea of
the millions upon millions of tons weight
resting on the enycloped land.
In an excellent article by Prof.
Hitchcock, on the great ice age of North
| America, he considers from careful
study of the remains, that this warm
period was of comparatively sudden ACCESS,
melting the SHOWS and ice in such quaint
| ties as to create torrents. In support OF
| this theory are many evidences in our own
city. Wherever this huge slow moving
body of ice came In contact with ledge,
the process of attrition went on. These
lodges crop out on the Bangor road,
| Church Hill road and on Belfasd road on
| the cast side, and on the west river road to
Sidney, the Bracket Corner road near the
Ballard schoolhousc, and the Winthrop
road. This polished condition with the
stria, are finely shown on the ledge near
the church in East Winthrop on the
ledge in the road leading from the Merrill
hill near Arches quarry in Manchester,
to the granite quarries in Hallowell, the
Fisher hill on the west river road and in
fact nearly if not all the lodges in this
vicinity have this same appearance. The
prooyingS are not so common for the rea-
son that they were made by rocks or
boulders in the under surface of the
glacier or ice sheet slowly grinding its
way along. The finest specimen Of this
kind in this vicinity, SO far as l have
noticed, is on the top of the ledge near
Ballard's Corner on the Sidney road
There are four of these grooves running
parallel with each other, one being about
ten feet long. Near the Ballard school
house is short groove on the side of the
ledge but fine specimen as it shows the
smooth polished surface. Twenty five
miles south Of this in the direction of
Lewiston is remarkable fine glacial
groove both from its length and depth
being about 80 feet long and 10 or more
inches wide The direction of this one is
from northwest to southeast. In speak
ling of these grooves it should be said the
movement of the glaciers making them Is
extremely slow, so that the grooves near
Ballari's corner were many years, 1t may
be centuries, in forming, for they were
made by the vast ice sheet instead OF
glacier as usually understood, which is a
vast mass of ice in valleys between the
sides of mountains.
During the past summer there was
good opportunity of studying glacial
action in the Swiss glaciers, the Narde
G,ace. and BLOSSOMS in Chamousne were
seen in the best seasons when the ice had
melted away, showing the deep lateral
growing high up the solid walls OF the
mountains Particularly was this shown
in the lower glacier at GrindleWaid.
While the manner of attrltlon was the
Same as that forming the grooves in cur
CITY and vicinity; the conditions were
different in that these in Augusta were
formed by a slow moving mass drifting
along. and were correctly speaking ice
sheets. g,
or the huge masses of rock, transported
Inv the moving ice very notable one Is
near the road leading from Bolton hin 10
Cross Hill This is near the south cno OF
the little pond and forms part OF the
wall to a garden plat ls Is remarNaoie
for its great size and for the evidence that
1t was cropped there from the under sur
face of an ice sheet and not swept along
in front of 1t. So far as exposed IL SHOWS
none of the strie, grooves or poiisheu
surface. Another interesting formation
Of this kind is seen on Western avenue
near the house of VIM. Milliken. here
the mass of boulde-s, large ard small are
mixed with the earth when apparently II
was a mass of mud It rests upon
stratum of clay, few feet in thickness
and under the clay formation OF strait
fed sand. Mr.. Miliiken's house is built
on a knoll formed of this glacial DRIFT
Mar Cnsbman street and Western avenue
th;s same drift formation is well shown.
In both these the boulders. both large ana
small. are roughly broken, not showing
the water worn characteristics. Ihere
are comparatively few of these glacial