Smyth WThomas MAAnderson JBAapg Bulletin-American Association of Petroleum Geologists2010-02-152010-02-151988 Febhttp://hdl.handle.net/1969.3/23536249-250Reconstructions of the northern Gulf of Mexico shelf for the Holocene have relied on the dating of isolated bathymetric banks.^These banks, which are interpreted as former shorelines, provide snapshots of the shelf during periods of relative sea level stillstand.^A more complete sedimentary record of the Holocene transgression is likely preserved in the incised valley-fill sequences.^The first step in deciphering the record of Holocene valley-fill sequences is development of high-resolution seismic facies models based on modern environments.^The modern incised valley-estuarine system of Galveston Bay has been seismically surveyed.^Important environments include bayhead delta (Trinity River delta), tidal inlet, flood tidal delta (Bolivar Roads), and estuarine sediments (central bay).^Additionally, fluvial sediments partially infill the entrenched Trinity River valley.^Seismic facies interpretation was corroborated by information obtained from sediment cores.^The influence of the rate of relative sea level rise on incised valley-fill facies architecture is demonstrated in hypothetical sequence models which are applied to the interpretation of high-resolution surveys of Holocene shelf deposits.Petroleum-- Reserves, Geology, & ExplorationGULF OF MEXICO-- GEOLOGYGULF OF MEXICO-- SEISMIC SURVEYSTEXAS-- SEISMIC SURVEYSALLUVIAL DEPOSITSQUATERNARY PERIODJournal