There are accounts of locals hiding in caves in the Dollette Hills during the Battle of Mansfield. Does anyone know if these caves still exist and where they might be?

They used to be near Double Churches, however the coal mining operation got them.

That's really sad. I wish I could have seen them and taken pictures. My gg grandmother hid her children there during the battle of Mansfield and was a good thing as their house was in the middle of battle. I would really like to document more about them. Were they spread over a large area or just one place? Do you know of any written stories, letters, etc. that would give me any information like how many, how big, were they natural or man-made. Were these old coal mines? Thanks again.

I can't give you anything except personal recollections from thirty years ago. They were commonly referred to as the "old indian caves". Caves was always plural, however I only knew of one. It was about five or ten miles southeast of the Battlefield off either Double Churches Road or Grove Hill Road I can't remember exactly. Behind the old cemetery was a trail into the woods leading to the cave. If I recall correctly it was in a high bluff overlooking Rocky Bayou. The entrance was maybe ten feet wide and was caved in about ten feet inside. There was obviously a larger 'room' which you could see in lying prone and appeared very large. The opening was big enough to squeeze into, but none of us were ever brave or dumb enough to try. I seem to recall stories of Spanish explorers mining for gold in the area, but I personally think this was naturally occurring. There was another creek very nearby called Cave Branch which could have been the location for other caves, but I never found them. I haven't been there in thirty years, but it is my understanding that they were destroyed in the late eighties or early nineties by the lignite strip mining operation. It broke my heart to see that destroyed.

Perhaps the local library or historical or genealogical society might have more info? Or try reading any Civil War accounts about Mansfield.
Just a thought.

A "Friends of Mansfield Battlefield" newsletter briefly mentions the caves here:

http://www.mansfieldbattlefield.org/newsletter_content.asp?I...

There are links to other Mansfield & Civil War info there also.

Or you might try searching these holdings:

http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~ladesoto/veach.htm

(That's all I know about the area. Just piqued my interest & did a little Googling around about it.)