Warm, shallow seas covered
New Jersey during Cambrian time. Quartzite (metamorphosed
sandstone) and thick limestone deposits typify the rocks found in
outcrops of this time and indicate a quiet geologic time interval for
this part of the North American continent. Fossils, including the
trilobite Olenellus, vertical worm burrows (Skolithos), and stromatolites attest to the marine origin of the Cambrian
formations of northwestern New Jersey.
 | North American Paleogeography: Fossil evidence tells us that
Laurentia was centered on the Equator and rotated so that in
present-day terms, Canada was east, instead of north, of the United
States. As with most of the continents, the majority of North America
was underwater throughout the Cambrian Period. Small landmasses in the
central part of the continent shed sediment in this shallow sea.
Farther out, away from this influx of sediment, shallow water
lime stones were deposited in a broad arc stretching from present-day
Maine south to Texas and up to the Canadian Rockies. Beyond this
region, deeper water deposits accumulated. |