The Forgotten Doctor of Port Stephens: Sinclair Finlay

While sifting through old land records for Stroud and Gloucester, one name stood out—Dr Sinclair Finlay. Curious, I followed the trail and uncovered the story of a quietly influential figure in the region’s early medical history.

Dr Finlay qualified in Ireland in 1883¹ and by 1887 he was living in Stroud with his wife, Ethel Cook, and his brother Francis who taught at Wards River.² Finlay’s move was encouraged by his relative, Charles Hugh Fawcett—a notable figure in Kyogle who retired to Stroud as Police Magistrate.³ With no doctor in the district and Finlay newly qualified, the timing was perfect.

As Government Medical Officer and Vaccinator for the vast Port Stephens district, Dr Finlay handled everything from diphtheria outbreaks to poisoning cases—and even saved one man’s life twice.⁴ Witnessing firsthand the horrors of preventable diseases, he was unafraid to challenge misinformation. In one newspaper rebuttal, he wrote: “When your correspondent speaks of cancer being introduced into the system by cow lymph, he shows utter ignorance of what he is writing about.”⁵

Widely respected, Dr Finlay was twice honoured with illuminated addresses by grateful locals.⁶ He and Ethel raised six sons before moving to Balmain and then Hunter’s Hill, where Ethel died in 1923.⁷ After Ethel’s death, Dr Finlay was admitted to what was then called the Parramatta Mental Hospital where he died in 1927.⁸

During his lifetime, Dr Finlay owned several properties in Gloucester including numbers 68–74 Church Street, Gloucester.⁹

Author: Janine Roberts