Rhea County Courthouse - Dayton, Tennessee
N 35° 29.695 W 085° 00.759
16S E 680262 N 3929745
Rhea County Courthouse, Dayton, Tennessee.
Waymark Code: WM23YB
Location: Tennessee, United States
Date Posted: 08/30/2007
Views: 18
This Romanesque Revival/Italian Villa Style courthouse was built in 1891, designated a National Historic Landmark in 1977, and restored in 1979. It is located on Markey Street between 2nd and 3rd streets in Dayton Tennessee.
By far the most celebrated court case in Rhea County and perhaps in all of Tennessee history was the case of the State of Tennessee vs. John Thomas Scopes, which took place in Dayton's Rhea County Courthouse 10-21 July 1925.
The Scopes Evolution Trial was a world-class event in its day, and it continues to attract inquiries and visitors from all over the United States and many parts of the world. It has become the benchmark for subsequent trials dealing with similar problems which are usually dubbed "Scopes II" by the press. The significance of the trial was officially recognized in 1977, when the 1891 Rhea County Courthouse was designated a National Historic Landmark by the National Park Service, and in 1979, when a one-million-dollar courthouse restoration and Scopes Trial Museum project was completed.
It is still operated as a courthouse and housing Scopes Trial and Rhea County Heritage museums, the building is open Monday-Friday, 8:00-4:30 except holidays. The Scopes Trial courtroom on the second floor contains the original judge's bench, four tables, dais rail, jury chairs, and spectator seats. During the trial's seventh day, the court met on a platform on the north lawn. In 2005 a Cessna Decosimo statue was erected, depicting W.J. Bryan in 1891 (when he began his Congressional career, and when the courthouse was built