Scopes

Scopes, Evolution and Dayton, Tennessee

Dayton, Tennessee was the site of the famous Scopes "Monkey Trial" in which John Scopes was put on trial in 1925 for teaching evolution.

The teaching of evolution was made illegal with the passing of the Butler Act, named after John W. Butler, a farmer and Tennessee state legislator who introduced the bill.

John W. Butler

The Butler Act, (Tenn. HB 185, 1925) stated:

That it shall be unlawful for any teacher in any of the Universities, Normals and all other public schools of the State which are supported in whole or in part by the public school funds of the State, to teach any theory that denies the Story of the Divine Creation of man as taught in the Bible, and to teach instead that man has descended from a lower order of animals.

This act set the stage for a "Trial of the Century" involving two major antagonists: William Jennings Bryan, famed orator, U.S. Congressman from Nebraska, Secretary of State under Woodrow Wilson, and three-time presidential candidate, pitted against Clarence Darrow, one of the most prominent lawyers in American history. Darrow was a politically active lawyer who developed a reputation for winning difficult cases and who was dedicated to defending those he considered powerless and unjustly prosecuted.

Darrow and Bryan together in the courtroom

The trial quickly became a media circus covered by reporters and journalists throughout the U.S., as well as from Europe.

The most famous of the journalists in attendance was H. L. Mencken, who covered the trial for the Baltimore Evening Sun. Known as the "Sage of Baltimore," Mencken was famous for his defense of individual liberty and for his scathing critique of what he considered ignorance and absurdity in American society. It was Mencken who coined the term "Bible Belt" and who gave Dayton the name "Monkey Town." Typical of Mencken's style of writing was his characterization of William Jennings Bryan during the trial.

This old buzzard, having failed to raise the mob against its rulers, now prepares to raise it against its teachers. He can never be the peasants' President, but there is still a chance to be the peasants' Pope. He leads a new crusade, his bald head glistening, his face streaming with sweat, his chest heaving beneath his rumpled alpaca coat. One somehow pities him, despite his so palpable imbecilities. It is a tragedy, indeed, to begin life as a hero and to end it as a buffoon. But let no one, laughing at him, underestimate the magic that lies in his black, malignant eye, his frayed but still eloquent voice. He can shake and inflame these poor ignoramuses as no other man among us can shake and inflame them, and he is desperately eager to order the charge. (Baltimore Evening Sun, July 16, 1925)

H. L. Mencken

(Examples of the Wit and Wisdom of H. L. Mencken)

The outcome of the Scopes trial was preordained. The defense did not expect to win. Scopes violated the Tennessee law and was, as expected, found guilty. The ACLU arranged for John Scopes to teach evolution in his class so that he would be arrested and put on trial. Their goal was ultimately to challenge the law on appeal, which was successful. Some 20 subsequent laws banning the teaching of evolution, or mandating equal time for the teaching of biblical creation, were passed by state legislatures as late as the 1960s. All, like the Butler Act, were declared unconstitutional.

John Scopes

The Scopes Trial took place in the Rhea County Courthouse.

The Courtroom in 1925

John Scopes Arraigned in the Rhea County Courtroom

The Courtroom Today

In the basement of the courthouse is a museum containing several images and artifacts related to the trial,

including

the handwritten minutes of the trial,

the typewriter used to copy the minutes,

and the book used by Scopes in his classroom.

The museum also documents the circus atmosphere that surrounded the trial.

Among those attending the trial was a chimpanzee

movie performer named Joe Mendi.

Signs declaring "Read Your Bible" were prominently displayed throughout the town.

Anti-evolution reading material was sold outside the courtroom.

The writers and performers of "Darwin’s Monkey Trot"

traveled to Dayton to promote their song, giving

both Bryan and Darrow a copy of the sheet music.

Handmade monkey dolls were sold during the Scopes Trial.

Women Selling Monkey Dolls during the Trial

Inherit the Wind is an excellent fictionalized adaptation of the Scopes Trial (based on the play written by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee), starring Spencer Tracy, Frederic March and Gene Kelly as characters based on Darrow, Bryan and Mencken respectively. The film prominently displays a circus-like atmosphere surrounding the trial, both in and out of the courtroom. The portrayal in the film did not in any way exceed what actually occurred during the real trial.

The Scopes Trial was to have a lasting effect on Dayton.

One of the streets in the town is named after William Jennings Bryan.

No road is named after Clarence Darrow.

On the other hand, there is an annual music and arts festival named after Scopes . . .

. . . and a pretty good local bar inspired by H. L. Mencken's name for the town.

One of the more interesting consequences of the trial was the founding of Bryan College.

William Jennings Bryan died 5 days after the conclusion of the Scopes Trial. A great throng of people came to watch his body leave Dayton on the train.

In 1930, Bryan College was founded to honor Bryan and to promote the Christian gospel he preached. Its prime educational mission is prominently displayed on the entrance gate to the college.

Bryan college was founded to teach Christian fundamentalist theology, which above all includes the biblical version of creation and the rejection of evolution. In 2014, the Bryan College administration issued an order requiring all of its faculty to sign an employment contract containing the following statement:

"that the origin of man was by fiat of God in the act of creation as related in the Book of Genesis; that he was created in the image of God; that he sinned and thereby incurred physical and spiritual death."

Following protest from faculty and students, the document was revised to read:

"We believe that all humanity is descended from Adam and Eve. They are historical persons created by God in a special formative act, and not from previously existing life forms."

According to Stephen Livesay, President of the college, the clarification was necessary "to maintain the historical and current theological position of the college with respect to the origin of man." He added that those faculty members who would not sign the statement would be considered to have "rejected" the college's offer of employment. Two faculty members who refused to sign the statement did not have their contracts renewed. Another faculty member, a tenured math professor and Head of the Natural Science Division who had taught at the college for 40 years, was let go because of his involvement in protests against the new contract requirement. Over 1,500 people have signed a petition calling for the president to resign.

It seems that the teaching of evolution is still controversial in Monkey Town.

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