Field Trip Itinerary - Marshall University

Tour of Letart Sand and Gravel Quarry, Jon Thompson
9:00 - 10:30
Tour The Robert C. Byrd Locks and Dam, Steve Brewster
2:00 - 3:30
5:00-7:30
Reception at Pullman Plaza Hotel
Total PDH's
(Field Trip):
Free Time to Freshen Up Before the Reception
Travel to The Robert C. Byrd Locks and Dam, George Chappell
4:15-5:00
The Legend of Mothman
1:15-1:30
1:30 - 2:00
Travel to Pullman Plaza Hotel
Drive to Mothman Statue
1:10-1:15
3:30 - 4:15
Lunch at the Iron Gate Grill
11:40 - 1:10
10:45- 11:30 Tour The Battle of Pt. Pleasant Historical Site and Silver Bridge Mem., George Chappell
11:30 - 11:40 Drive to the Iron Gate Grill
10:30 - 10:45 Travel to Pt. Pleasant
Travel to Letart Sand and Gravel Corp., George Chappell
Breakfast and Bus Loading at Pullman Plaza Hotel
8:15 - 9:00
7:00 - 8:15
Field Trip Itinerary
4.00
1.50
0.25
0.25
1.50
0.50
PDH's
INTRODUCTION
Our field trip today will take us north of Huntington, WV, up State Route 2 following the Ohio
River. We will tour The Letart Corporation Sand and Gravel Quarry near Gallipolis Ferry, WV.
We will stop and have lunch and visit at historical landmarks in Point Pleasant. Our final tour of
the day will be at the Robert C. Byrd Locks and Dam near Apple Grove, WV. Presentations will
be given prior and during each tour. Enjoy your day!
Huntington, WV (Point A) Tuesday August 4, 2015
The City of Huntington was founded in 1871 by engineer and railroad baron Collis P.
Huntington. This was to be the western terminus for the C & O Railway where coal and timber
resources could be brought and placed on barges on the Ohio River and then sent to markets both
north and south of the City. The City of Huntington was the second in the United States to have
an electric street car system. The first was San Francisco, CA. For decades, Huntington had
been known for its transportation capabilities, both barge and rail, as well as its industrial base in
steel manufacturing.
Today, Huntington is one of the largest inland ports
in the nation and is the second largest city (pop.
49,138 - 2010 census) in the State of West Virginia.
The major employers are Marshall University,
Cabell Huntington Hospital, St. Mary’s Medical
Center, CSX Transportation and the U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers.
In 2006, Warner Brothers showcased the City
of Huntington in general, and Marshall
University specifically, in the motion picture
We Are Marshall. The film was based on the
true story of the November 14, 1970 plane
crash that kill almost all of the MU football
team as well as MU staff and prominent
members of the community.
Matthew
McConaughey starred as the new head coach, Jack Lengyel, that ultimately rebuilt the football
program. Filming for the movie was done primarily on the streets of Huntington and on
Marshall University’s campus.
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Letart Corporation (Point B)
Letart Corporation is a family owned
construction aggregate business located in
Gallipolis Ferry, West Virginia. Their
products include sand and gravel, crushed
limestone, fill dirt, dump truck services,
topsoil, culverts and geotextiles.
The operation is located in glacial outwash
terraces that were deposited along the Ohio
River Valley during the last periods of
glaciation.
These deposits have been
studied in the areas of Proctorville/Rome,
Ohio and Cox Landing, West Virginia.
These area are south of the Letart Operation; however, information from the southern study areas
can be used to understand the deposits in Gallipolis Ferry, West Virginia.
In general, during glacial
advances in the north, material
from the northern Canadian
was picked up by the ice and
carried south to the glacial
terminus. When the glaciers
retreated, water carrying this
material washed down into the
newly formed Ohio River
Valley. As the rush of water
waned, the coarse materials,
mostly sand and gravel, were
deposited in the valley and
against the valley walls. These deposits are available today for mining. As you walk around the
piles of aggregate, you will see that many of the stones are of igneous and metamorphic origin.
It is this material that was carried down from northern Canada.
Geology of the Ohio River Valley
History
From a geological standpoint, the Ohio River is young. The river formed on a piecemeal basis
beginning between 2.5 and 3 million years ago. The earliest ice ages occurred at this time and
dammed portions of north-flowing rivers. The Teays River was the largest of these rivers. The
modern Ohio River flows within segments of the ancient Teays River. The ancient rivers were
rearranged or consumed by glaciers and lakes.
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Area of Field Trip
The upper Ohio River formed when one of the glacial lakes overflowed into a south-flowing
tributary of the Teays River. Prior to that event, the north-flowing Steubenville River (no longer
in existence) began between New Martinsville and Paden City, West Virginia. Likewise, the
south-flowing Marietta River (no longer in existence) began between these two cities. The
overflowing lake carved through the separating hill and connected the rivers.
The resulting floodwaters enlarged the small Marietta Valley to a size more typical of a large
river. The new large river subsequently drained glacial lakes and melting glaciers at the end of
the Ice Age. The valley grew during and following the Ice Age.
Many small rivers were altered or abandoned after the upper Ohio River formed. Valleys of
some abandoned rivers can still be seen on satellite and aerial images of the hills of Ohio and
West Virginia between Marietta, Ohio, and Huntington, West Virginia. As testimony to the
major changes that occurred, such valleys are found on hilltops.
The middle Ohio River formed in a manner similar to the formation of the upper Ohio River. A
north-flowing river was temporarily dammed southwest of present-day Louisville, creating a
large lake until the dam burst. A new route was carved to the Mississippi. Eventually the upper
and middle sections combined to form what is essentially the modern Ohio River.
While the Ohio River is quite deep, it is a naturally shallow river that was artificially deepened
by a series of dams. The dams raise the water level in shallow stretches, allowing for commercial
navigation. Near its origin at the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers, the Ohio
remains fairly shallow, never rising above around 30 feet (nine meters) all the way past
Cincinnati. From its origin to Cincinnati, the average depth is approximately 27 feet (eight m).
However, once past Cincinnati, the river deepens substantially. Due to the damming, along with
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glacier formations and migrations in the latter part of the second Ice Age, the river's depth
increases nearly fivefold over about 100 miles (161 km), coming to a maximum depth of 168
feet (51 m) just west of Louisville, Kentucky. The 50 miles (80 km) around Louisville represent
the deepest area of the river with an average depth of approximately 132 feet (40 m), allowing
for much larger vessels to traverse the river. From Louisville, the river loses its depth very
gradually until its confluence with the Mississippi at Cairo, Illinois, where it has an approximate
depth of 20 feet (six m) because it is freer flowing. The natural depth of the river varies from
about three feet to 40 feet.
Water levels for the Ohio River are predicted daily by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA). The water depth predictions are relative to each local flood plain based
upon predicted rainfall in the Ohio River basin in five reports as follows:
•
•
•
•
•
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Hannibal Dam, Ohio (including the Allegheny and
Monongahela rivers)
Willow Island Dam, Ohio, to Greenup Dam, Kentucky (including the Kanawha River)
Portsmouth, Ohio, to Markland Dam, Kentucky
McAlpine Dam, Kentucky, to Cannelton Dam, Indiana
Newburgh Dam, Indiana, to Golconda, Illinois
Bedrock Geology
The bedrock of the Ohio River Valley in the area of our field trip is of Pennsylvanian Age
from the Monongahela Formation and Conemaugh Group. Please refer to page 5 for a
generalized stratigraphic chart for West Virginia.
The Monongahela Formation is characterized by non-marine cyclic sequences of sandstone,
siltstone, red and gray shale, limestone and coal. This group contains the Uniontown and
Pittsburgh Formations. It extends from the top of the Waynesburg coal to the base of the
Pittsburgh coal. Other coal seams within this group are the Uniontown, Sewickley and
Redstone. Please refer to the illustration on page 6 for additional information relative to other
units within this group for the Cabell County area.
The Conemaugh Group is characterized by cyclic sequences of red and gray shale, siltstone,
and sandstone with thin limestones and coal. These units are mostly non-marine. This group
is divided into the Cassleman and Glenshaw Formations. It extends from the bottom of the
Pittsburgh coal to the top of the Upper Freeport coal. Other coal seams within this group are
the Elk Lick, Harlem, Bakerstown and Mahoning. The Glenshaw Formation also includes the
Ames and Brush Creek Limestones which have a marine origin. Please refer to the illustration
on page 6 for additional information relative to other units within this group for the Cabell
County area.
Alluvial Deposits
As previously discussed, much of the alluvial deposits can be traced back to a glacial origin.
Fluvial terraces have developed along the valley wall over time since the Ohio River was
formed by ice dams to the north during the past Ice Age. These terraces appear to decrease in
age as one goes from the valley walls down to the river level. It has been theorized that the
terraces closest to the river are of recent or Holocene age while the terraces that are higher in
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5
Generalized Geologic Column for Cabell County, West Virginia
Taken from WVGES Publication MAP-WV32, 1987 by R. F. Fonner and G. A. Chappell
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elevation and farther away from the river are of Pleistocene age. Lower terraces are typically
fine grained (clay, silt and fine sand) with shallow soil development while the upper terraces
consist of sands, gravels and cobbles with deep soil development. Stone counts from the upper
terraces have revealed, on average, 11.0% and 25.1% of the stones were of igneous and
metamorphic origin, res-pectively, giving a total of 36.1% of crystalline rocks. This
concentration of crystalline rock suggests that the glaciers picked up this material in northern
Canada; most probably, the Canadian Shield.
The adjacent illustration shows the
type of terrace
development that is
believed to have
occurred in the
Ohio River Valley.
“a” would represent
the valley wall
consisting
of
bedrock while “b”
and “c” would represent glacial outhwash terraces that are “cut and inset” while “d” would
represent the current, active, floodplain.
Point Pleasant
Point Pleasant is a city in, and the county seat of, Mason County, West Virginia, at the
confluence of the Ohio and Kanawha Rivers. The population was 4,350 at the 2010 census.
History
. In the second half of 1749, the French explorer, Pierre Joseph Céloron de Blainville, claimed
French sovereignty over the Ohio Valley, burying a
lead plaque at the meeting point of the Ohio and
Kanawha Rivers, naming the place Point Pleasant.
The text on the plaque is as follows:
In the year 1749, in the reign of King Louis XV, we,
Celeron, commander of a detachment sent by
Commander de La Galissonière, Commander
General of New France, for the restoration of peace
in various untamed villages in the region, have
buried this plaque at the confluence of the Ohio and
Tchadakoin [Rivers] this 29th day of July near the fine river bank, to commemorate the
retaking into possession of the afore-mentioned river bank and all the surrounding lands
on both river shores back to the river sources, as secured by previous kings of France,
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and maintained by force of arms and by treaties, specifically the Treaties of Rijswick, of
Utrecht and of Aix la Chapelle
Céloron's expedition was a diplomatic failure since the local tribes remained pro-English, and
English representatives in the region refused to go away. This was, therefore, a prelude to a
series of incidents that would lead to the loss of New France and the domination of eastern North
America by the British Empire following the defeat of France in the French and Indian War
(1754-1763).
The expedition can nevertheless be seen in more positive terms as a geographical project, since
the Céloron expedition was the starting point for the first map of the Ohio Valley. The map was
the work of the Jesuit Joseph Pierre de Bonnecamps.
The Battle of Point Pleasant Historic Site (Point C)
The Battle of Point Pleasant, also known as the Battle of Kanawha in some older accounts, was
the only major action of Dunmore's War. It was fought on October 10, 1774, primarily between
Virginia militia and Indians from the Shawnee and Mingo tribes. Along the Ohio River near
modern Point Pleasant, West Virginia, Indians under the Shawnee Chief Cornstalk attacked
Virginia militia under Colonel Andrew Lewis,
hoping to halt Lewis's advance into the Ohio
Valley. After a long and furious battle,
Cornstalk retreated. After the battle, the
Virginians, along with a second force led by
Lord Dunmore, the Royal Governor of
Virginia, marched into the Ohio Valley and
compelled Cornstalk to agree to a treaty, ending
the war.
The Virginians lost about 75 killed and 140
wounded. The Shawnees' losses could not be
determined, since they carried away their
wounded and threw many of the dead into the
river. The next morning, Colonel Christian,
who had arrived shortly after the battle,
marched his men over the battlefield. They
found twenty-one dead braves in the open, and
twelve more were discovered hastily covered
with brush and old logs. Among those killed
was Pucksinwah, the father of Tecumseh.
Besides scalps, the Virginians reportedly
captured 40 guns, many tomahawks and some plunder which was later sold at auction.
The Battle of Point Pleasant forced Cornstalk to make peace in the Treaty of Camp Charlotte,
ceding to Virginia the Shawnee claims to all lands south of the Ohio River (today's states of
Kentucky and West Virginia). The Shawnee were also obligated in the Treaty of Camp Charlotte
to return all white captives and stop attacking barges of immigrants traveling on the Ohio River.
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Silver Bridge Memorial (Point D)
The Silver Bridge was an eyebar-chain suspension bridge built in 1928 and named for the color
of its aluminum paint. The bridge connected Point Pleasant, West Virginia, and Gallipolis, Ohio,
over the Ohio River. The adjacent photograph was
taken when the bridge opened in 1928.
On December 15, 1967, the Silver Bridge collapsed
while it was full of rush-hour traffic, resulting in
the deaths of 46 people. Two of the victims were
never found. Investigation of the wreckage pointed
to the cause of the collapse being the failure of a
single eyebar in a suspension chain, due to a small
defect 0.1 inch (2.5 mm) deep. Analysis showed
that the bridge was carrying much heavier loads than it had originally been designed for and had
been poorly maintained.
The collapsed bridge was replaced by the Silver Memorial
Bridge, which was completed in 1969.
The bridge failure was due to a defect in a single link, eyebar 330, on the north of the Ohio subsidiary chain, the first
link below the top of the Ohio tower. A small crack was
formed through fretting wear at the bearing, and grew
through internal corrosion, a problem known as stress
corrosion cracking. The crack was only about 0.1 inches
(2.5 mm) deep when it went critical, and it broke in a
brittle fashion. Growth of the crack was probably exacerbated by residual stress in the eyebar
created during manufacture. The bridge was a victim of insufficient redundancy.
When the lower side of the eyebar failed, all the load was transferred to the other side of the
eyebar, which then failed by ductile overload. The joint was then held together only by three
eyebars, and another slipped off the pin at the center of the bearing, so the chain was completely
severed. Collapse of the entire structure was inevitable since all parts of a suspension bridge are
in equilibrium with one another. Witnesses afterward estimated that it took only about a minute
for the whole bridge to fall.
Inspection prior to construction would not have been able to notice the tiny crack. ... the only
way to detect the fracture would have been to disassemble the eyebar. The technology used for
inspection at the time was not capable of detecting such cracks.
The collapse focused much needed attention on the condition of older bridges, leading to
intensified inspection protocols and numerous eventual replacements. There were only two
bridges built to a similar design, one upstream at St. Marys, West Virginia, and the notably
longer Hercilio Luz Bridge at Florianópolis, Brazil. The St. Marys Bridge was immediately
closed to traffic and the bridge was demolished by the state in 1971. A small truss bridge was
kept to allow access to an island in the river. The Hi Carpenter Memorial Bridge was later built
to replace the demolished bridge. The Hercilio Luz Bridge remained in active service until 1991
and still stands at Florianópolis due to being built to a higher safety factor than the West Virginia
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bridge. Modern non-destructive testing methods allow some of the older bridges to remain in
service where they are located on lightly traveled roads. Most heavily used bridges of this type
have been replaced with modern bridges of various types.
The collapse inspired legislation to ensure that older bridges were regularly inspected and
maintained, however aging infrastructure is still a problem in the United States. In 1983 the
Mianus River Bridge in Greenwich, Connecticut, collapsed, causing the deaths of three drivers.
The I-35W Mississippi River bridge disaster in 2007 resulted in 13 deaths. In early September
2009, the failure of an eyebar in the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge was discovered during a
scheduled closure, resulting in an emergency repair to reinforce the failed member.
Lunch at the Iron Gate Grill (Point E)
Located at 601 Main St, Point Pleasant, WV, The Iron
Gate Grill is considered one of the best restaurants in
Point Pleasant. TipAdvisor gives it 4 out of 5 stars.
The menu provides for a variety of dining experience;
from fine cuisine to hamburgers and fries.
When you enter the restaurant you will notice
the ornate ceiling and fine, quality woodwork
throughout. The building was once a bank and
was sold and converted into a restaurant.
Mothman (Point F)
Mothman is a moth-like creature reportedly seen in the Point Pleasant area of West Virginia
from November 15, 1966 to December 15, 1967. The first newspaper report was published in the
Point Pleasant Register dated November 16, 1966, titled "Couples See Man-Sized
Bird...Creature...Something".
Mothman was introduced to a wider audience by Gray Barker in 1970, later popularized by John
Keel in his 1975 book The Mothman Prophecies, claiming that Mothman was related to a wide
array of supernatural events in the area and the collapse of the Silver Bridge. The 2002 film The
Mothman Prophecies, starring Richard Gere, was based on Keel's book.
On November 12, 1966, five men who were digging a grave at a cemetery near Clendenin, WV
claimed to see a man-like figure fly low from the trees over their heads. This is often identified
as the first known sighting of what became known as the Mothman.
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Shortly thereafter, on November 15, 1966, two young couples from Point Pleasant, Roger and
Linda Scarberry, and Steve and Mary Mallette told police they saw a large white creature whose
eyes "glowed red" when the car headlights picked it up. They described it as a "large flying man
with ten-foot wings following their car while they were driving in an area outside of town known
as 'the TNT area', the site of a former World War II munitions
plant.
During the next few days, other people reported similar
sightings. Two volunteer firemen who sighted it said it was a
"large bird with red eyes". Mason County Sheriff George
Johnson commented that he believed the sightings were due to
an unusually large heron he termed a "shitepoke". Contractor
Newell Partridge told Johnson that when he aimed a flashlight
at a creature in a nearby field its eyes glowed "like bicycle
reflectors", and blamed buzzing noises from his television set
and the disappearance of his German Shepherd dog on the
creature. Wildlife biologist Dr. Robert L. Smith at West
Virginia University told reporters that descriptions and
sightings all fit the sandhill crane, a large American crane
almost as high as a man with a seven-foot wingspan featuring
circles of reddish coloring around the eyes, and that the bird
may have wandered out of its migration route.
There were no Mothman reports in the immediate aftermath of the December 15, 1967 collapse
of the Silver Bridge and the death of 46 people; nonetheless, legends have arisen that the
Mothman sightings and the bridge collapse were connected.
Folklorist Jan Harold Brunvand notes that Mothman has been widely covered in the popular
press, some claiming sightings connected with UFOs, and others claiming that a military storage
site was Mothman's "home". Brunvand notes that recountings of the 1966-67 Mothman reports
usually state that at least 100 people saw Mothman with many more "afraid to report their
sightings" but observed that written sources for such stories consisted of children's books or
sensationalized or undocumented accounts that fail to quote identifiable persons. Brunvand
found elements in common among many Mothman reports and much older folk tales, suggesting
that something real may have triggered the scares and became woven with existing folklore. He
also records anecdotal tales of Mothman supposedly attacking the roofs of parked cars inhabited
by teenagers.
Robert C. Byrd Locks and Dam (Point G)
The Gallipolis Locks and Dam was built on the
Ohio River near Gallipolis Ferry, WV, as part
of a series of locks and dams to allow
navigation year-round. It began operation in
August 25, 1937, and final construction was
completed in October 1937.
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Fifty years later, construction began on a
project to build bigger lock chambers,
capable of locking through modern-sized
tows and barges. Work began in November
1987 and was completed January 1993. The
project consists of a main lock chamber 110feet wide by 1,200-feet long with an auxiliary
lock chamber 110-feet wide by 600-feet long.
In January 1993 the lock and dam was renamed after West Virginia Senator Robert C. Byrd.
Construction to rehabilitate the 1,116-foot long dam began in August 1992 and was completed in
2002. Eight new roller gates were built, and control units, a motor control center and electric
feeders were replaced.
In June 2007 the fishing access pier was opened to the public. The pier meets federally required
accessibility standards. The fishing pier is closed during winter months to prevent vehicles from
entering high water at pier level. It is scheduled to reopen to the public each May, providing the
water level is below pier level.
The future will bring changes to the Ohio
abutment side in the form of a new
hydroelectric facility and a recreation area.
A public recreation area is located on the
West Virginia side of river. It includes a park
with a picnic area, playground and parking.
The park is open year- round. Each year the fishing recreation area opens, depending on weather
conditions or on Memorial Day (whichever comes first). The closing time at end of year is
dictated by the weather. The park is closed at dusk and opens at 6:00 a.m. each day.
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