Little Belknap shield, formed about 3,000 years ago, sits to the right of a high scoria cone of the main Belknap Crater vent, with Mount Washington located to the right of both cones. It is about east of Belknap shield's summit craters. Erupted on the flank of the much more extensive Belknap Crater, which also has its own secondary eruptive vents, Little Belknap lacks scoria cones, potentially because it was fed by magma that was degassed prior to its eruption.