OUTSTANDING GEOLOGIC FEATURES OF PENNSYLVANIA STANDING STONE AND FRENCH AZILUM BRADFORD COUNTY Location Geology U.S. Route 6, Bradford Co., Wyalusing Twp., lat: 41.73090, lon: -76.29733 (overlook); French Azilum: 469 Queens Rd., Towanda, Pa.; Standing Stone: lat: 41.73857, lon.: -76.33141 (on private property, observe from river); Wyalusing 7.5-minute quadrangle Standing Stone is a prominent landmark on the shoreline of the North Branch Susquehanna River in Bradford County. The 25foot high block of sandstone occurs on the inside of a 0.85-mile diameter meander of the river. The meander, symmetrical and oriented to the northeast, is deflected around an eroded bedrock knoll of Lock Haven Formation. The knoll stands at 1,245 feet elevation, about 580 feet above the river. Standing Stone is nearly vertical, having toppled from the hillside of nearly flatlying rocks during a landslide 8,000–10,000 years ago. It was likely all or partially buried (upright) in the toe of the slide; following erosion, river-terrace deposits likely buried it again. Erosion since then has revealed the terrace deposit with underlying landslide material. Standing Stone and a few other prone blocks of sandstone remain. The landmark is adjacent to French Azilum (corruption of “asylum”), which was a shortlived haven for refugees from the 1793 French Revolution. The Queen of France, Marie Antoinette, was to come to this isolated refuge on a terrace of the Susquehanna River. The terrace is about 50 to 60 feet above the river, and is comprised of glacial sand and gravel along with minor amounts of “exotic” pebbles of granite, gneiss, and chert. These pebble types originated more than one hundred miles to the northeast in the Mohawk River Valley and Adirondack Mountains of New York. A superb view of the meander and French Azilum can be seen at the “Marie Antoinette Overlook” on U.S. Route 6 to the east. Left: view to the north of Standing Stone; center: view of the western portion of the meander from the Marie Antoinette Overlook (photographs by Gary Fleeger, Pa. Geological Survey); right: PAMAP imagery of Susquehanna River and Standing Stone. Because Standing Stone is on private property, it must be viewed from the river. Visit the Pa. Boat and Fish Commission for river access points. Recommended Reading Inners, J. D., Fleeger, G. M., and Delano, H. L., 2003, The Standing Stone: a landslide emplaced monolith on the North Branch Susquehanna River near Towanda, Pennsylvania.: Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs, v. 35, no. 3, p. 8. For information regarding outstanding geologic features, contact the Pennsylvania Geological Survey: Bureau of Topographic and Geologic Survey, 3240 Schoolhouse Rd., Middletown, PA 17057 717-702-2017 www.dcnr.state.pa.us/topogeo Also visit the French Azilum web site S. Reese, 2014