When Francis Carroll Finley was born on 3 October 1812, in Lincoln, Tennessee, United States, his father, Francis Finley, was 37 and his mother, Jane Carothers, was 37. He married Nancy E. Milam on 11 March 1838, in Marshall, Tennessee, United States. They were the parents of at least 4 sons and 3 daughters. He died in Marshall, Tennessee, United States, and was buried in Finley Cemetery, Marshall, Tennessee, United States.