Sherry Skye Stuart
Award-winning Author
"Couldn't put it down. I love the genuine, raw capturing
of the passion and struggles of these women.
Unfortunately, some of these struggles are still true
for women today." Dr. Kimberly Nearpass
Skye's B​ooks
I've written one historical (F) fiction book, four non-fiction books (NF), edited a non-fiction (NF) book and edited my mother's memoir (NF).
Forgotten Female Felons (F) 2025 (see previous page)
Sandra Lynne Smith, a Memoir (NF) 2019, 2026
The History of Penrose, Colorado (NF) 2021
Pioneer Women of Beaver Creek (NF) 2009, 2022
Forgotten Cemeteries of Beaver Creek (NF) 2008. 2022
Down Memory Lane with the Beaver Creek Folks (NF - editor) 2007, 2022
San Juan Bautista Cemetery (NF) 2007, 2022
Scroll down for a look at each one.
All are available on Amazon
Sandra Lynne Smith was born during the Depression. After her parent’s divorce, the family moved from Minnesota to Texas. There she met her husband. They married as teenagers and raised ten children, one daughter and nine sons. Two of the boys have Down Syndrome; one of them is partially deaf, legally blind and non-verbal. She was a dedicated caretaker and fierce advocate for her disabled sons.
Sandy was a creative woman, a gifted pianist and organist, and an active church woman. She loved arranging colorful flowers, sewing vibrant quilts and experimenting with new craft projects. She loved playing and listening to classical music and Broadway musicals,
Graduating from Baylor University at age fifty-five, with a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education and Special Education, was an accomplishment of which she was especially proud.
Sandra was familiar with heartache and happiness. She met life’s challenges with dignity and grace, determination and strength.
In 2008, she began compiling her college writings with personal and family stories and photos. Under her direction, she and I worked on this memoir until her death in 2015.
As an author and historian, I love collecting and reading women’s memoirs. Now I have the pleasure of republishing my mother’s memoir on what would have been her 90th birthday, in April 2026.
These are her words, recollections and legacy. I am proud to be descended from this remarkable woman.
Sherry Skye Stuart is the oldest and only daughter of Sandra and Jesse Smith. She is an award-winning author and historian who lives in Colorado.
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Available on Amazon $15
These twenty-five pioneer women traveled across the plains, courageously raised their families, and are all buried above the lonely banks of Beaver Creek in Fremont County, Colorado. Mary Coffman came to Colorado as a young girl with her parents, while Elizabeth Banta homesteaded with her husband. Sarah Hughes was a skilled midwife and Martha Kelley baked biscuits for the Indians when she was a teenager. Prussian-born Augusta Woodriff came to Beaver Creek to farm its fertile banks while Adah Toof taught school and lost two husbands while living on Beaver Creek.
Many of these pioneer women died in childbirth. Mariah Flesher was barely sixteen years old when she gave birth, died, and was buried next to her infant daughter. Sarah Tillery died just a week before the 1880 Census was taken. The pioneer women on Beaver Creek left a legacy of faith, courage, and perseverance; gifts that women today also possess. As women, we share the common threads of home, faith, and family. My desire in writing this book is to honor these courageous pioneer women of Beaver Creek and to carry their legacy in my heart.
FOREWORD by Kathy Uhland, the great-great-granddaughter of Mary Hall Lackey, and several other pioneer women buried in the forgotten cemeteries of Beaver Creek.
"Each story in this book describes the honoree's genealogy and her social history, accented with numerous photos that contribute to what a woman's life was like during that time. Sherry's personal-style narrative, combined with a backdrop of factual information, makes this a touching yet factual account."
Christie L. Wright Oct 21, 2010
Available on Amazon $15
In the late 1800s three cemeteries were established along the waters of Beaver Creek, near Penrose, in Fremont County, Colorado. Though miles apart, each one was built on a hill with the Rocky Mountains as a backdrop and the clear rushing creek below.
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The three cemeteries, Upper Beaver, Middle Beaver and Lower Beaver were the final resting place for many of the pioneer families who settled along Beaver Creek. Upper and Lower beaver Creek cemeteries are still “active” meaning that burials still take place, while Middle Beaver is now inaccessible and inactive
These silent cemeteries cast their spell over Sherry Skye Stuart, who spent hours hiking, photodocumenting, and researching the people who are laid to rest in each one. Their stories will tug at your heart and invite you to explore these forgotten cemeteries.
“Our ancestors are not just faded names on a lonely tombstone. They lived, breathed, loved, laughed, worked, struggled, suffered, and endured. Because of their unsung efforts, we each have an opportunity to make our world a better place, by building on the heritage our ancestors left to us.” Sherry Skye Stuart
available on Amazon $15
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"San Juan Bautista Cemetery"
In the early 1900’s the San Juan Bautista Cemetery was established southeast of
Florence, Colorado, as a place for the Mexican Catholics to be buried. Some say this was because of prejudice on the part of non - Mexicans, while others say the Penitentes needed a place to bury their dead.
Nearly four hundred people have been buried in San Juan Bautista, most of whom were Mexican, Catholic, infants, or who had
nowhere else to be buried. Many of the
graves are unmarked, with only a white cross
to show that they were buried somewhere
in the cemetery.
The San Juan Bautitsta Cemetery Association lovingly tends the cemetery and hosts a Memorial Day ceremony each year to honor
and to remember those who are buried in
the cemetery.
Using numerous lists of names, standing tombstones, Church and mortuary records,
obituaries, and with a lot of determination
and research.
Sherry Skye Stuart has compiled an exhaustive list of those who are buried in San Juan Bautista Cemetery, with its history,
photos, and resources.
available on Amazon for $12
