In transcribing the following passage from Smith’s text, I have begun with the rough OCR material provided by the Internet Archive and then collated it with the Internet Archive’s page images. If you spot any errors, please notify the webmaster. — George P. Landow
The strata which overlay the chalk, in the deepest part of the Thames depression, are of great thickness. They vary much in superficial appearance, from the strongest clays of Essex to the lightest sands of Norfolk. The clay is generally the highest, and the sand nearest the chalk, with an intermediate surface of loam or brick-earth, near the clay.
The surface of the ground formed by the dark blue or London clay, rises more generally into hills than that of any other division of the strata over chalk. Insular hills, moist pastures, strong arable lands, and woods, are the chief characters of the district within a circle of ten miles around London.
It seems to extend north-eastward, through the hills in Essex to the cliffs against the sea at Walton and Harwich. The cliffs of Shoe- bury and Sheppy, on each side the estuary of the Thames, and Hordel cliff, on the coast of Hampshire, appear to be the same. [40]
Related material
- A County-by-County Geological Description of England’s Counties
- Smith’s Explanation of His Map of Geological Strata in England and Wales
- The History of the Idea of Geological Strata before William Smith’s Formulation and Map
Bibliography
Smith, William. A Memoir to the Map and Delineation of Strata of England and Wales. London: John Cary, 1815.
Created 11 September 2018