Scopes 'Monkey Trial' play set for this weekend in Dayton

A Day Away By Mike Steely

If you haven't planned anything for Friday and Saturday this week you may want to drive over to Dayton, Tennessee, and attend the Scopes Trial reenactment, "Destiny in Dayton." The play, which takes place in the original Rhea County Courthouse where the historic trial took place, is a dramatization of the 1925 trial over the teaching of evolution in Tennessee schools.

That historic event pitted attorneys Clarence Darrow and William Jennings Bryan against one another and is sponsored by the Rhea Heritage Preservation Foundation. Admission is $20 but space is limited. You can contact admin@rheaheritage.com or call 423-680-9896. Tickets are available for the Friday and Saturday plays, but you may want to check available seating or reserve online.

Dayton is the county seat of Rhea County and nearby places of interest include the Cherokee Removal Park to the east side of the river in Birchwood, just off Highway 30. Watts Bar Lake and Dam is a good stopping point along Route 28 between Decatur and Spring City.

In two years the community plans to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the trial. The courthouse also features a museum about the trial, which tested Tennessee's law against the teaching of evolution in schools.

The small town has about 7,000 residents. The La-Z-Boy manufacturing plant is located there as well as nearby Chickamauga Lake. Bryan College is located in Dayton and is named for William Jennings Bryan, who defended the anti-evolution law during the trial. He died there only five days after the trial.

Dayton has other events planned around the Scopes Trial festival including a weekend of music, food, games and vendors.

During the festival, you may also dig for fossils and minerals, sponsored by Core Academy of Science. You can show off BB gun and archery skills, sponsored by Rhea County 4-H Shooting Teams (age restrictions apply) and play games provided by the Rhea County Community Center. Tom Davis, vice president of the Rhea Heritage Preservation Foundation, told The Focus there will even be a cornhole tournament.

You may also enjoy games, treats and stories provided by the Clyde W. Roddy Public Library, catch a balloon animal created by Dan Gates or view craft demonstrations by a blacksmith, basket weaver, and wood carver and a display by the Walden's Ridge Quilting Club.

While traveling to Dayton you may want to also see the former Washington Ferry site, the Blythe's Ferry site at the Cherokee Removal Park, or the Meigs County Courthouse in Decatur. Rhea County is named for Revolutionary War veteran John Rhea. Unlike most of East Tennessee Rhea County supported the Confederate cause in the American Civil War.

Along the way from Decatur to Dayton you might want to stop and visit the grave of Judge David Campbell, who was an early East Tennessee pioneer and is said to be buried next to his horse.

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