Cortland County is located smack dab in the center of New York State. It sits at an elevation of 1,100-2,100 feet above sea level, which results in cooler temperatures than it's southern neighbors. You can usually feel a dramatic drop in temperature the further north you travel. Precipitation from the Great Lakes and the Finger Lakes, combined with the colder temperatures from the high elevation, result in feet of snow being dumped on the many mountains and valleys of the region every winter. The snow plows are busy all winter moving the snow off the roads and by late winter, the piles of plowed snow along the sides of the roads are 8-feet tall or more and packed solid. When Spring finally arrives and all the snow and ice start to melt - the "Spring thaw", the soil is muddy for weeks, but the runoff fills the streams, lakes, and wells with fresh water, rejuvenates the trees, plants, grass, and flowers, and everything comes back to life.
Cortland County was part of the Military Tract, land awarded to soldiers of the American Revolution, in the early 1800s, and prior to that it was home to various Native American tribes. For thousands of years, their trails and camps were the only sign of human life in what we now call "Upstate" New York.
As you can see, from this terrain map, courtesy of Google Maps, Cortland County is southeast of the Finger Lakes. Some of the many hills are over 2,100 feet above sea level, while the valleys are level and as low as 1,000 feet above sea level.
According to the intriguing account found in the old book "Stories of Cortland County," the geological history of the region is a tale of dramatic transformation. It describes a time when the hills stood tall and sharp, a stark contrast to the landscape we see today. This narrative delves into the concept of an ice age, a period of prolonged freezing that reshaped the terrain in profound ways. As the chilling temperatures gripped the land, massive sheets of ice and snow traveled from the distant northern regions, exerting immense pressure as they advanced southwards. Picture the relentless force of these icy behemoths as they gradually flattened the once imposing mountains, leaving in their wake a landscape altered beyond recognition. The journey of the ice sheets was not a gentle one; they carried along enormous boulders, shattering them into scattered remnants along their path. The valleys, once deep and rugged, bore the brunt of this glacial onslaught, being filled with layers of gravel that now lie buried beneath the surface, some reaching depths of over 200 feet.
This geological upheaval shaped Cortland County, leaving fertile pastures, lush forests, and beautiful, rolling hills in every direction.
Fossils found in Cortland County are from the Devonian period, while the oldest fossils in neighboring Chenango County date back to the Silurian period.
The Silurian is a geologic period and system spanning 24.6 million years from the end of the Ordovician Period, at 443.8 million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Devonian Period, 419.2 Mya. The Silurian is the shortest period of the Paleozoic Era. As with other geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period's start and end are well identified, but the exact dates are uncertain by a few million years. The base of the Silurian is set at a series of major Ordovician–Silurian extinction events when up to 60% of marine genera were wiped out. [Source: Wikipedia]
The Devonian is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic era during the Phanerozoic eon, spanning 60.3 million years from the end of the preceding Silurian period at 419.2 million years ago (Ma), to the beginning of the succeeding Carboniferous period at 358.9 Ma. It is named after Devon, South West England, where rocks from this period were first studied. [Source: Wikipedia]
Much of Cortland County and Chenango County rest on the Ithaca Formation, Upper and Lower Division, part of the Genesee Group, dating back to the Devonian period.
For more information on the geology of Cortland and Chenango Counties and the central New York area, these sites are helpful:
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