Maine's Surficial Geology

Virtual Tour

• Our virtual tour is a series of photos which portray Maine's glacial landscapes and deposits.

Field Localities

• Originally published on the web as the Survey's "Site of the Month," these sites include more detailed descriptions of geologic features, field trips, and localities.

Frequently Asked Questions

Fact Sheets

• Surficial Geologic History of Maine
• Introduction to Surficial Materials
• A General Introduction to the Presumpscot Formation - Maine's "Blue Clay"
• Maine's Glacial Deltas
• Maine's Glacial Moraines: Living on the Edge
• Lake Levels and Climate Change in Maine and Eastern North America during the last 12,000 years
• Maine's Ice Age Trail
• Lidar Imagery Reveals Maine's Land Surface in Unprecedented Detail
• A Trick of the Light: Seeing (or Not Seeing) Geologic Features Under Different Lighting Conditions

Geologic Maps and Digital Data

• Available surficial geologic maps
  • ONLINE surficial geologic map series
    • Detailed Surficial Geology Maps Online
    • Digital Data for Surficial Geology Maps (shapefiles of individual quadrangles)
    • Surficial Materials Maps Online
    • Digital Data for Surficial Materials Maps (statewide shapefile)
  • PRINTED geologic maps
    • Descriptions of MGS surficial geologic map series
      • Detailed Surficial Geology Maps
      • Reconnaissance Surficial Geology Maps
      • 1:250,000 Surficial Geology Maps
      • Surficial Materials Maps
• Statewide geologic maps
  • Simplified Surficial Geologic Map of Maine (scale 1:2,000,000)
  • Surficial Geologic Map of Maine, scale 1:500,000, edited by W.B. Thompson and H.W. Borns, Jr., 1985. A 42" x 52" color wall map showing the surficial geology of Maine. Includes sites of special interest, radiocarbon-dated sites, reference list, correlation chart, inset map of inferred extent of ice cover during deglaciation.

Related Reading

• A Guide to the Geology of Baxter State Park and Katahdin - Bulletin 43
• The Geology of Sebago Lake State Park - web version of MGS Bulletin 11
• The Geology of Mount Blue State Park - web version of MGS Bulletin 17
• The Geology of Mount Desert Island - web version of MGS Bulletin 38
• The Geology of the Two Lights and Crescent Beach State Parks Area, Cape Elizabeth, Maine - web version of MGS Bulletin 26
• Surficial Geology Handbook for Southern Maine
• Bibliography of Maine Geology - For those interested in more in-depth research, the Bibliography of Maine Geology contains more than 12,000 references related to Maine geology. The Bibliography is part of the Maps and Publications Search. The search results displayed will have links to online Maine Geological Survey maps and publications.

Field Trips

• University of Maine, Climate Change Institute Maine's Ice Age Trail

Soils

• Maine Secretary of State Kids' Page - State Soil - Chesuncook
• Natural Resources Conservation Service
• "Helping People Understand Soils"
• Published Soil Surveys for Maine
• State Soil - Chesuncook soil series

General Interest

• U.S. Geological Survey - The Great Ice Age

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Last updated on July 15, 2015