Augusta lies on top of the
Ordovician Martinsburg Formation, created around 450 million B. C. when a volcanic chain of islands collided with the proto
North American Plate. The islands rode over top of the North American Plate creating the valley. The valley was under a shallow sea until geologic pressure forced the shale upwards. The
Wisconsin Glacier covered the valley from 21,000 B.C. to 13,000 B.C. Augusta was covered in three hundred meters of ice. When the ice slowly melted this created the
Paulinskill River as well as Papakatkin Creek. The Paulinskill River, which starts in
Newton and flows westerly through Augusta from
Lafayette, drains into the
Delaware River to the southwest. The Paulinskill is one of the premier fishing streams in the state of New Jersey. Each year, thousands of trout are stocked in the Paulinskill River from the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife. Papakatkin Creek drains into the
Wallkill River to the north. The drainage divide is just north of
Route 206 in Augusta. A chain of hills leads Papakatkin Creek to travel east and then north into the Wallkill River. ==Notable people==