A woman who went into business 30 years ago selling seven-layer cakes has died.

Wilma Dean Jacobs, 89, of Andalusia, died Tuesday at her residence.

Funeral services will be held 10:30 a.m. Monday at The Carolina Baptist Church Family Life Center. Interment will follow at Carolina Baptist Church Cemetery.

Jacobs started Dean’s Cake House in 1994 and became known as “Miss Dean, the Cake Lady.” She credited word of mouth for bringing business to her door in an out-of-the-way spot on Alabama 55. The Cake House later moved to Snowden Drive.

Those who knew Jacobs said the sweet smell of cake clung to her. Her business became famous for seven-layer cakes, stacked as high as would go under cake domes. The cakes are frozen after baking and sold in grocery stores and markets in Alabama, Florida and Mississippi.

A lifelong resident of Andalusia, Dean went to work at a Delchamps grocery store, where she was deli manager for about 25 years. She later carried her recipes with her into business.

“Everybody kept saying, ‘Dean, you ought to open your own bakery,’” she told AL.com in 2019. “After a while, I did.”

Gov. Kay Ivey later honored Jacobs for producing one of the top products in Alabama.

Memorials may be made to Carolina Baptist Church, 17745 Rockhole Bridge Rd, Andalusia, AL 36420.