Lantern Hill
Encyclopedia
Lantern Hill, elevation 491 feet (149 m), is located in North Stonington, Connecticut
.
cliffs are said to shine in sunlight when viewed from the Atlantic Ocean
(Caulkins 1895; Crandall 1949).
Some consider the hill to be "Tar Barrel Hill," where barrels of tar were burned on August 11, 1814, to warn residents of the approach of the British during the War of 1812
(Philips 1992); however, "Tar Barrel Hill" may be what is now known as "Jeremy Hill" to the southeast (Heermance 1935).
of the Mesozoic Era
in geologic time. The formation of the fault and the quartz are associated with the early formation of the Atlantic Ocean (Altamura 1995; Altamura 2003).
, a hiking path maintained in Connecticut by the Connecticut Forest and Park Association (CFPA 2005). The hilltop offers views of the Atlantic Ocean and the surrounding countryside, including the Mashantucket Pequots' Lantern Hill Reservation, the Mashantucket Museum and Research Center, and the Foxwoods Resort and Casino.
The Story of the Yawgoog Trails - Narragansett Trail
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
.
Name
The hill's white quartzQuartz
Quartz is the second-most-abundant mineral in the Earth's continental crust, after feldspar. It is made up of a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon–oxygen tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tetrahedra, giving an overall formula SiO2. There are many different varieties of quartz,...
cliffs are said to shine in sunlight when viewed from the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
(Caulkins 1895; Crandall 1949).
Some consider the hill to be "Tar Barrel Hill," where barrels of tar were burned on August 11, 1814, to warn residents of the approach of the British during the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
(Philips 1992); however, "Tar Barrel Hill" may be what is now known as "Jeremy Hill" to the southeast (Heermance 1935).
Geology
The hill is composed mostly of high-purity milky quartz and it occupies the inactive Lantern Hill Fault, which runs south into the Atlantic Ocean. Analysis of the quartz reveals that it is 238 million years old—the mid-Triassic PeriodTriassic
The Triassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about 250 to 200 Mya . As the first period of the Mesozoic Era, the Triassic follows the Permian and is followed by the Jurassic. Both the start and end of the Triassic are marked by major extinction events...
of the Mesozoic Era
Mesozoic
The Mesozoic era is an interval of geological time from about 250 million years ago to about 65 million years ago. It is often referred to as the age of reptiles because reptiles, namely dinosaurs, were the dominant terrestrial and marine vertebrates of the time...
in geologic time. The formation of the fault and the quartz are associated with the early formation of the Atlantic Ocean (Altamura 1995; Altamura 2003).
Land Use
David D. Mallory began commercial mining of the hill's silica in 1870 (Haynes and Boylan 1976); the quarry closed when the Mashantucket Pequots acquired the land in 1994. Lantern Hill is the southwestern terminus of the Narragansett TrailNarragansett Trail
The Narragansett Trail is a Connecticut hiking trail and is one of the Blue-Blazed hiking trails maintained by the Connecticut Forest and Park Association and the Narragansett Council, the Rhode Island chapter of the Boy Scouts of America....
, a hiking path maintained in Connecticut by the Connecticut Forest and Park Association (CFPA 2005). The hilltop offers views of the Atlantic Ocean and the surrounding countryside, including the Mashantucket Pequots' Lantern Hill Reservation, the Mashantucket Museum and Research Center, and the Foxwoods Resort and Casino.
Image gallery
External links
The Story of the Yawgoog Trails - Narragansett Trail