Kelley's Island shoreline

This photograph is most likely of portion of shoreline at Kelley's Island. Kelleys Island is in fact a mass of solid limestone rock, lifted about twelve feet out of the Lake Erie, and rising in some points to an elevation of 40 or 50 feet above the level of the lake. Geologically, the island consists of successive strata of Columbus limestone with as many as 60 layers which vary in thickness from 2 to 8 inches and full of marine fossils. The eastern shores of the island have mostly been worn smooth from a westbound glacier, producing gentle shores full of rocky beaches. Western facing shores are more sharp and jagged, with erosion caused from the waves of lake. Columbus limestone can be found in a north-south line from Kelleys Island in Lake Erie to south of Columbus and many quarries are, or have been, actively removing this high-calcium limestone for use in production of cement, rip-rap, driveway gravel and road base, agricultural lime, and other uses. The unit was formed in a clear, shallow, tropical sea that covered the state. Fossils of marine animals are abundant in the Columbus Limestone.