A Diluvial Interpretation of the Appalachian Provinces: Geology and Geomorphology.

The physiographic provinces and general geology of the Appalachians and associated provinces are described. The Coastal Plain Province starts at the Fall Line and forms an increasingly thick wedge of sediment that continues offshore to thick margin sediments. It was deposited by paleocurrents flowing eastward. The Piedmont Province is an erosion surface with monadnocks and metamorphosed, except for sediments in the numerous rift valleys. It is thought to have formed from accreted exotic terranes from the east. West of the Piedmont are the Blue Ridge Mountains, the elevated, metamorphosed core of the Appalachians. The Valley and Ridge and the Appalachian Plateau Provinces are described with sediments of the Appalachian Basin that thicken southeast over 13,600 m. Overlying the eastern Piedmont is the Coastal Plain sediment wedge, extending offshore. Some are exposed; others lie under Coastal Plain sediments. The region is extremely complex. Uniformitarian theories center on orogenesis and plate tectonic cycles over hundreds of millions of years. Though intensively studied, problems and puzzles exist. We note several and offer a Biblical explanation for some major features. During the Flooding Stage, the Blue Ridge and Piedmont were thrust northwest as one massive unit. At the same time, large cratonic basins and rifts were developing to the west. The Retreating Stage saw great erosion of the Appalachians and Piedmont. Waning east-directed currents deposited the Coastal Plain sediment wedge and formed water and wind gaps late in the Genesis Flood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]