THE YORKSHIRE BOULDER COMMITTEE AND ITS FOURTH
YEAR'S WORK.
SAMUEL CHADWICK, F.G.S., Malton ; Honorary Secretary
to the Committee for 1890,
The Committee, in presenting its report at the
annual meeting of the Yorkshire Naturalists' Union, have pleasure in stating
that although the year has not been so favourable so far as regards the
number of boulder reports received, yet there has been a series of detail
gone through with a view of re-arranging the method of recording, and of
sytematising a more thorough survey than has yet been attempted, the general
idea being to divide the county, more or less, into sections (which would be
placed under the supervision of various members of the Committee, with the
assistance, as far as possible, of members and associates of the Union), by
which means they hope to be able to present a more detailed survey of the
boulder district The boulder reports which have been received during the
year have been carefully examined by the Committee, and duly forwarded to
the British Association Boulder Committee, by whom they have been accepted,
and presented at the recent meeting of the British Association held at
Cardiff. As many of the more remarkable boulders have now been recorded, the
Committee is desirous of obtaining systematised information upon the
erratics of particular districts of Yorkshire, and will, in the course of
next year, endeavour to obtain reports of a more connected description. To
aid in the identification of boulders steps are being taken to form a
collection of some of the more characteristic rocks of the Lake country. Mr.
T. Tate will visit the Lake district and spend several days collecting on
behalf of the Committee. Mr. Benjamin Holgate has contributed an extensive
and important series of rocks from the same district very carefully
labelled, the localities being affixed at the time of collecting.
REPORTS UPON ERRATICS IN NORTH AND EAST RIDINGS OF
YORKSHIRE.
By
S
CHADWICK, F.G.S., Malton ; Secretary to the Committee,
1 . A square block of whinstone. The length is 2 ft.
7 in. x 2 ft. 4 in. x 2 ft. 3 in. above ground. In the parish of Folkton,
near Filey, on the estate of Mr. J. W. Woodall, Scarborough. The farm is
called West Flotmanby Hall farm. Folkton is situated about five miles to the
west of Filey. West Flotmanby Hall is east of Folkton about half a mile. No
striations or marks of any kind, but upon the N.E. face of the boulder is
the mark of the Government broad arrow. The nearest district from which it
could have travelled is Kildale, in Cleveland, about forty miles west. About
150 ft. above the sea. It is situated nearly on the top of a ridge of gravel
running N.E. by S.W., and rests upon gravel-sand and beds of clay.
2. In the parish of Folkton, on the estate of Mr. J.
W. Woodall, Scarborough, round a spring head at the N.E. side of West
Flotmanby Hall, near Filey, there are several boulders which have been
collected from the Carrs; the largest is
2 ft. 6 in. x 1 ft. 11 in. x 1 ft. 3 in. Mountain
limestone.
1ft 7 in x 1 ft 4 in x 1
ft 1 in Diorite.
1ft 3in x 11 in x 8 in Diorite.
1ft 1in x 10 in x 8 in Whinstone.
1ft 0 in x 9 in x 8 in Sandstone.
All are subangular to rounded. They have all been
moved to their present position. The whinstone and diorite may have come
from the west, and the sandstone from the north-west; probably about forty
miles distant. Height about 150 ft. above sea-level.
3. Boulder of Shap granite measuring 2 ft. 11 in.
long, 2 ft. 6 in. broad, 2 ft. 1 in. thick. In the parish of Ganton, near
Scarborough, on the estate of Sir C. Legard, Ganton Hall, now forming the
corner-stone on the premises belonging to the Greyhound Inn. Is a large Shap
boulder. It is from subangular to rounded, and is oblong in shape. There are
no indications of any striae or grooving. It has been a sort of
trysting-stone for generations. An old man remembers when he first came to
the village, sixty-two years ago, this stone was then at the junction or
angle of the road, and from this position anyone could be seen approaching
the village by the highway. It was removed across the road to its present
position in 1853. It formerly stood at the north corner of the village lane
joining the highway. Height, about 60 ft. above the sea. The formation on
which the boulder rests is composed of beds of sand to a great depth ; there
is occasionally a band of rough angular flint intermixed, but generally
speaking the whole district about here is a huge sand-bed.
4. At the west end of the same house are two
boulders measuring
2 ft. 6 in. x I ft. 4 in. x 1 ft. 3 in. Whinstone.
1 ft. 3 in. x 1 ft. 2 in. X 1 ft. 0 in. Oolitic
sandstone.
The one composed of whinstone is angular, the
Oolitic sandstone subangular. Both have been moved to their present
position. The sandstone may have come across the valley about six miles
north. Height above the sea, about 60 ft.
5. Boulder of grey granite; 3 ft. 8 in. long, 1 ft.
8 in. broad, 1 ft. 6 in. thick, occurs in the parish of Lund, at the north
end of the village of Lund, near Beverley, East Riding of Yorkshire, and
about 150 yards to the north of Lund Church. Subangular. There is no doubt
but that this boulder has been removed to its present position, although a
long time ago. No striae or markings. Probably the nearest source would be
about 200 miles north. Height, about 150 ft. above the sea.
In the parish of Lund, at the north end of the
village, principally in the village street, at the north side of the church,
there are about 100 boulders, which are to be seen in the footpaths,
foundations of old houses, banks of the road, etc. ; these are composed of
whinstone, diorite, hard compact sandstone, and granite, but the majority
are whinstone. The largest is about 2 ft. long, 14 in. broad, and 9 in.
thick; the smallest is about 9 in. thick, 8 in, broad, 7 in. deep. Besides
these are several hundreds not more than •6 in. x 6 in. x 6 in., which have
been used for paving footpaths. They are all rounded to subangular. The
whole have been moved to their present position. The nearest rock of the
same nature would be about Cleveland in the north; probably 100 miles north.
Height, about 150 ft. above the sea. Boulders, more or less small, of all
sorts of foreign rocks are being continually cleared off the land about
here, and broken up for roads. There seems to be only a thin covering of
boulder clay in some parts, and underneath a great thickness of rounded
chalk gravel with flints, etc
…
BENJ. HOLGATE, F.G.S.,
Regent House, Grosvenor Road, Headingley, Leeds.
Group of [ca. 100] boulders, 0° 25' 15" W.
longitude; 54° 16' 30" N. latitude. Falsgrave, near Scarborough, where
Stepney Road turns sharply to the right at Falsgrave. One 3 ft. 8 in. X 2
ft. 6 in. X 2 ft. 8 in., basalt; one 3 ft. 3 in. x 1 ft. 6 in. x 1 ft. 6
in., red granite. Two of nearly the same size of Lias, and numerous others
down to the smallest sizes. About 130 tons have been carted away for road
metal. Generally rounded, but a few are subangular. All have been moved.
Striations in large boulders in all directions. They are from all directions
and different distances, and represent different formations, but many are
igneous or metamorphic. Say 27 per cent, various; 12 per cent, some twenty
kinds of granite and syenites of different colours; 4 per cent, gneiss; 12
per cent, basalts, various ; 8 per cent, quartzites ; 2 per cent,
greenstones ; 4 per cent, volcanic ashes; 12 per cent, mountain limestone; 1
per cent, millstone grit; 6 per cent, Lias; 5 per cent oolite; 5 per cent,
pisolite; 1 per cent, chert ; 1 per cent, chalk flint. Height, 200 ft. above
the sea, and covering an area of 150 yards x 20 yards. They are embedded in
glacial drift, evidently slightly pervious. Some water must have percolated
through the clay, acting chemically on some of those most easily thus acted
upon. In some cases the iron has been turned brown, but there has not been a
free passage of water through. In levelling the road in question in no case
have they gone more than 6 ft. deep; thus all were near the surface.
The Secretary will always be glad to supply
schedules for the purpose of recording observations upon erratics, or in
supplying any information that from time to time may be required
Hull Geological Society 2020
(republished from The Naturalist with permission of the Yorkshire Naturalists Union.)