Fossiliferous Bauxite in Glacial Drift, Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts

Abstract

Pebbles of pisolitic bauxite occur in Pleistocene drift on Martha's Vineyard. The bauxite contains plant remains and relict quartz and was derived from plant-bearing sediments, probably from the preglacial coastal plain of New England. The preservation of plant tissue suggests that bauxitization took place beneath, rather than above, the water table, as generally believed. This occurrence of bauxite is the northernmost known in eastern North America and suggests the possible existence of undiscovered deposits in the northern coastal plain.