Scopes Monkey Trial: Darrow statue dedication set for Friday

When the sun rises Friday, Clarence Darrow will stand opposite his "Scopes Monkey Trial" foe, William Jennings Bryan, on the Rhea County Courthouse lawn for the first time since their 1925 showdown.

A statue of Darrow by Pennsylvania sculptor Zenos Frudakis will stand on the north side at the front of the courthouse to balance Bryan's likeness, erectd in 2005, on the south.

A dedication and unveiling ceremony is set for 10 a.m. Friday, the first day of the annual Scopes Trial Play and Festival, which continues through July 23.

Frudakis' 7-foot bronze statue, two years in the making, will be installed Thursday, according to a statement from Frudakis Studio.

"When I learned there was no statue of Clarence Darrow anywhere in the U.S., much less the site of his most famous court case, I felt compelled to correct this," Frudakis said. "Memorializing Darrow alongside the existing Bryan statue will now at least balance the views inherent in the trial, and accurately reflect history, as well as symbolically re-create the court drama which captured the attention of the nation."

Organizers said scheduled speakers include actor John de Lancie, who played "Q" on the television series "Star Trek: The Next Generation;" Andrew Kersten, University of Idaho-Moscow dean of the College of Letters, Arts and Sciences who wrote the 2011 biography, "Clarence Darrow: American Iconoclast;" and Freedom From Religion Foundation co-presidents Dan Barker and Annie Laurie Gaylor. The ceremony will end with the unveiling of the statue.

In the sweltering heat from July 10 to July 21, 1925, the Rhea County Courthouse was the stage for the trial of Dayton High School teacher John T. Scopes, who was charged with violating state law by teaching that human beings evolved from a "lower order of animals."

Scopes was convicted and fined $100, but the decision was reversed in 1927 by the Tennessee Supreme Court because the judge and not the jury set Scopes' fine. The Butler Act, the act at issue in the trial, stood until 1967 when it was repealed by Tennessee lawmakers.. The case raised debate on issues such as separation of church and state, academic freedom and the relationship between science and religion.

In 1977, the National Park Service named the courthouse a national historic landmark. That is a rarer designation than being listed on the National Register of Historic Places, which the courthouse has been on since 1972.

The statue has drawn some opposition. In March, veteran County Commissioner Bill Hollin complained the commission never got to vote because opponents were bottled up in committee. Hollin said Bryan had a greater impact on the community.

The sculpture gained approval from the county with stipulations that it be the same height as Bryan's and that the work cost Rhea County taxpayers nothing.

Another opponent, longtime local activist June Griffin, said the Darrow statue "doesn't belong there" and considers the courthouse grounds where Bryan was victorious in the original trial "sacred territory."

Ralph Green, president of the Rhea County Historical and Genealogical Society, sees the Darrow statue as the other side of the story and believes it will lend authenticity to the play, which relies "about 90 percent" on the trial transcripts.

Frudakis and members of the Freedom From Religion Foundation - the organization that is underwriting the statue - saw Darrow's absence as a "missing link," according to a statement. The foundation contributed $150,000, covering most of the cost to produce the statue.

"We join together with the community of Dayton and Rhea County in celebrating the history made here in 1925," said Rosalie Frudakis, president of Frudakis Studio Inc., who is organizing the installation and dedication. She thanked everyone who helped with the project.

Contributions were collected through the American Humanist Association and the Committee to Honor Clarence Darrow, which was formed in 2015, foundation officials said. Other committee members included The Freethought Society and William Dusenberry, a Tulsa, Okla., educator and vice president of the Oklahoma Chapter of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, who first conceived the idea for a statue.

Contact staff writer Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6569.