July 10, 1925

On this day in history in 1925 the Scopes Monkey Trial began.

John Scopes

An Intentional Lawbreaker

John Thomas Scopes was a high school science teacher in Tennessee in the 1920s. He was born in 1900, the only son of five children, to Thomas and Mary Scopes. He became infamous when he started teaching evolution to his students even though it violated Tennessee's Butler Act, which outlawed its teaching. Oddly enough, Scopes actually taught the subject matter with the intent of getting in trouble. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) was looking for someone to purposely violate the Butler Act so they could go to court and challenge its constitutionality, and Scopes stepped up. He likely wasn't prepared for the zoo the trial was going to become, however.

The trial taking place on the courthouse lawn

The Monkey Trial

Scopes had a stellar lineup in his defense team, most notably Clarence Darrow who had already tried numerous cases with the ACLU. The prosecution was not without its A-listers either. Most notable was William Jennings Bryan who had run for president on the Democratic ticket three times, had served in the House of Representatives, and was Secretary of State under Woodrow Wilson.

Within days of the trial beginning groups of spectators and reporters began to set up outside the courthouse. An exhibit was even formed featuring two monkeys and vendors sold toy monkeys and food to the growing crowd. The crowd within the courthouse was so large the judge had the trial moved to the courthouse lawn after fearing the floor would collapse from the number of spectators. Outside several thousand watched the trial.

We Find the Defendant to be...

The trial concluded on July 21 and found Scopes guilty after the jury took less than ten minutes to deliberate. Scopes was ordered to pay a fine of $100. The defense team appealed the case to the state Supreme Court who held the Butler Act to be constitutional. The Act remained law until 1967 when it was finally repealed by the state legislature.