Glaciotectonic origin of the Massachusetts coastal end moraines and a fluctuating late Wisconsinan ice margin

Cape Cod and islands south and west. Evidence of a glaciotectonic origin includes the stratified drift composition of the moraines, dislocated preglacial and glaciolacustrine deposits, tilted preglacial and glacial beds, folding and thrust faulting, and morphologic similarity to ancient and modern glaciotectonic moraines. Over-all recession of late Wisconsinan ice was characterized by alternating episodes of ice-front retreat, during which the outwash plains were formed, and of ice-front advance, during which the moraines were built. Retreat of the ice from Cape Cod may have been similar to the retreat of the Lake Michigan Lobe.--Modified journal abstract.