3 9

ft. ins.2 05 62 9

28

FIELD MEETING IN THE DUSTON DISTRICT,NEAR NORTHAMPfON.

Saturday, 7th July, 1945.

Report by the Director: Vernon Wilson, Ph.D., M.Sc., DJ.C.

THE Association has visited this district on three previousoccasions-l 874, 1891 and 1921. On this occasion the

party met at Northampton station and then took the Weedonroad out of the town to the old ironstone quarries to the S.E. ofOld Duston. Here the Director gave a brief outline of the geologyin the vicinity and the Northampton Ironstone was examinedin the old quarry face on the north side of the road where 9 to10 feet of beds are still visible.

The members then proceeded through Old Duston to NewDuston where, in the "Top Quarry," the upper Variable Bedsof the Northampton Sands with a few feet of overlying whiteLower Estuarine Sands were seen and a few fragmentary fossilscollected.

The party continued along the road to Harlestone and in aquarry on the west side of the road opposite the lodge at the entranceto Harlestone Heath the following sequence, here recorded forthe first time, was examined :-

SECTION IN QUARRY OPPOSITE HARLESTONE HEATH LODGE.LoWER EsTUARINE SERIES. ft. ins.4. Sandy soil with much broken current-bedded brown sandstone in

the bottom part 2 03. Soft white sand... 5 6NORTHAMPTON SANDS---VARIABLE BEDS.

2. Thin current-bedded, flaggy sandstone with occasional lenses ofboxstone ; becoming softer towards the base ... ... 7 0

1. Thick wedge-bedded brown sandstones with hard, gritty, ooliticlenses in the top 2 feet ... 13 6

In the next field to the north nearly 30 feet of sandstonesbelonging to the Northampton Sand Series were seen in a quarrylabelled" Clay Pit" on the six-inch map, the details are as follows:

SECTION IN "CLAY PIT" QUARRY, NEAR DUDMAN'SPLANTATION, HARLESTONE.

NORTHAMPTON SANDS-VARIABLE BEDS.

6. Broken sandstone with sand above5. Soft brown ferruginous thin bedded sandstones ...4. Brown sandstones, rather harder than the beds above3. Hard; light brown, current-bedded, calcareous sandstone (" Pendle

Beds") with limonite partings and "pot-lids"; the latterare finely oolitic and fissile and are broken up into thin flagsfor paving and walling

FIELD MEETING IN THE DUSTON DISTRICT. 29

ft. ins.2. Dark. brown sandstones worked for" cotters" or scouring bricks 10 61. Grey-green-hearted sandstones with dark ferruginous streaks and

bands, seen to . .. 5 0

After lunch at Harlestone the party returned to New Dustonand proceeded to the old brick works at Hopping Hill where theUpper Estuarine Clays, containing a massive limestone bed in theupper part, rest non-sequentially on White Sands of the LowerEstuarine Series. The section is now considerably overgrownand many of the details recorded by L. Richardson (Prof. Cott.F. C., vol. 22, p. 144) could not be made out. However, Ostreasowerbyi and Placunopsis socialis were collected from the UpperEstuarine limestone.

About 300 yards to the south of the brickworks the GreatOolite Limestone is exposed in the old disused Limekiln Quarry;most of Mr. Richardson's details of this section (ibid., p. 142)could be made out and numerous fossils were obtained, includinga fine palatal tooth of Lepidotus.

Near the eastern end of the quarry a temporary excavation hadbeen made in the floor of the quarry and the following details belowRichardson's lowest bed (Bed 10) were recorded :-

TEMPORARY EXCAVATION IN FLOOR OF LIMEKILN QUARRY,HOPPING HILL.

GREAT OoLITE.

Bed 10 of L. Richardson's section (ibid., p. 142)Brown marl partingDark blue-grey claySoft brown marl ...Brown silty limestone

(1) UPPER EsTUARINE CLAYS.Blue-grey clays below, seen to

ft. ins.

1o43

2 0

This concluded the programme of the meeting and on theway back to Northampton a diversion was made to the old villageof Dallington where Mr. Greenough, a resident, gave the memberssome account of the history of the village and its picturesquesurroundings. The meeting concluded with an expression ofthanks to the Director.