Paleoenvironment and age of kaolin deposits in the Andersonville district, Georgia

The kaolin deposits of the Andersonville district of Georgia are thick and relatively pure; they grade laterally and vertically into sandy kaolin and sand. The sedimentological and mineralogical character of the clay and the enclosing sand suggests deposition in a marine shallow-water to estuarine environment. Palynomorph and invertebrate fossil assemblages from strata adjacent to the kaolin beds support the suggested depositional environment of the kaolin and the subsequent subaerial formation of bauxite. Movement on the Andersonville and related faults probably influenced basinal topography and served to maintain a restricted circulation in the basin. Sporomorph biostratigraphy limits the accumulation of kaolin and the formation of bauxite deposits to early Wilcox (late Paleocene) time.