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• ,~ ~ 1` <br />GEOLOGY OF BENTONITE AREA <br />FRFS~IONT COUNTY, COLD 0 <br />LOCATION AND ACCESSIBILITY <br />Bentonite area includes lode mining claims which are <br />owned by Glen R. Lemberg and Sons of Salida, Colorado. The <br />area is located southeastward from the town of Howard. <br />Approximately 3 miles southeast of Howard a dirt road branches <br />off Highway 50 and leads westward to the bentonite claims. <br />The dirt road, about 2 miles long, is easily traversable. <br />Bentonite occurs mostly on gently to moderately rising slopes <br />of a ridge. Overburden does not exceed 1-6 feet in thickness. <br />Thus, the bentonite deposit is amenable to open-cutting. <br />GFD?ERAL GEOLOGY <br />Since our interest centers around size and extent of <br />the bentonite deposit, general geology of the deposit is not <br />discussed in detail. <br />In order of superposition, older to younger rocks exposed <br />in the examined area are Pennsylvanian red beds, Eocene monzon- <br />ite porphyry, Eocene or Miocene volcanic rocks, and recent <br />alluvium. The Pennsylvanian beds designated es "Minturn member" <br />in south central Colorado predominate in the studied area. <br />These clastica consisting oP red sandstones and shales appear <br />to have been intruded by monzonite porphyry. Volcanic rocks <br />such as andesite, latite, and basalt overlie the red beds and <br />monzonite and represent the latest phases of volaanic activity <br />in the claimed area and surrounding area. <br />