February 26, 1930

Medical geneticist Sara Crews Finley was born in Lineville. She and her husband, Wayne Finley, co-founded the UAB Laboratory of Medical Genetics, the first medical genetics program in the Southeast, which they oversaw for more than 30 years. Throughout her career, Sara Finley authored or co-authored more than 150 publications and was the first woman to serve as president of the University of Alabama Medical Alumni Association and the Jefferson County Medical Society. The Finleys were founding fellows of the American College of Medical Genetics and were inducted into the Alabama Healthcare Hall of Fame in 2001.

Read more at Encyclopedia of Alabama.

Wayne and Sara Finley, both born and raised in Alabama, established the Laboratory of Medical Genetics at the University of Alabama at Birmingham in 1962. (Photo courtesy of Wayne Finley, Encyclopedia of Alabama)

For more on Alabama’s Bicentennial, visit Alabama 200.