Scopes Monkey Trial: Evolution vs. Faith in Court

A high school football coach who barely taught biology became the defendant in the most famous trial of the twentieth century. John T. Scopes stood accused in a Dayton, Tennessee courtroom of the crime of teaching evolution, and the entire nation watched as science and fundamentalism collided. Tennessee had passed the Butler Act in March 1925, making it illegal to teach any theory denying the biblical account of divine creation. The American Civil Liberties Union advertised for a volunteer willing to challenge the law, and civic boosters in Dayton saw an opportunity to put their small town on the map. Scopes, a 24-year-old substitute teacher, agreed to be the test case despite being unsure whether he had actually taught evolution at all. The trial attracted two of America's most famous orators. William Jennings Bryan, three-time presidential candidate and devout Presbyterian, led the prosecution. Clarence Darrow, the nation's most celebrated defense attorney and an avowed agnostic, represented Scopes. Hundreds of reporters descended on Dayton, and WGN radio broadcast proceedings live to millions of listeners, making it the first trial ever transmitted by radio. The dramatic climax came when Darrow called Bryan himself to the witness stand as an expert on the Bible. Under withering cross-examination, Bryan admitted that the six days of creation might not have been literal 24-hour days, shocking his fundamentalist supporters. The exchange left Bryan physically and intellectually exhausted. Scopes was convicted and fined one hundred dollars, though the verdict was later overturned on a technicality. Bryan died in his sleep five days after the trial ended. The Butler Act remained on Tennessee's books until 1967, but the Scopes trial permanently embedded the evolution debate in American public life.