It is named for the unincorporated village of Towaco, which is near the place its type section was described by paleontologist Paul E.

The primarily red color of this formation is often evidence that the sediments were deposited in arid conditions.

[1] In other layers, indeterminate fossil ornithischian tracks have been noted,[5] along with additional reptile and dinosaur prints.

Carbonized plant remains and impressions, as well as root structures and pollen, are present.

[1] The Towaco Formation rests conformably above the Preakness Mountain Basalt and below the Hook Mountain Basalt, placing its deposition somewhere between approximately 198 and 197 million years ago during the early Jurassic stage known as the Hettangian.