Today historian Rick Britton talks about July 10th in U.S. History: In 1925, in Dayton, Tennessee, the so-called “Scopes Monkey Trial” begins with John Scopes, a young high school science teacher, accused of teaching evolution in violation of a Tennessee state law.

The law made it a misdemeanor to “teach any theory that denies the story of the Divine Creation of man as taught in the Bible, and to teach instead that man has descended from a lower order of animals.” Scopes had conspired to get charged with this violation, and after his arrest he enlisted the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) to organize a defense. Hearing of this attack on Christian fundamentalism, William Jennings Bryan, the three-time Democratic presidential candidate and a fundamentalist hero, volunteered to assist the prosecution. Soon after, the great attorney Clarence Darrow agreed to join the ACLU in the defense. The stage was set for one of the most famous trials in U.S. history.

In front of several thousand spectators in the open air–the judge had moved the venue outside–Darrow as his sole witness called Bryan in an attempt to discredit his literal interpretation of the Bible. In a searching examination, Bryan was subjected to severe ridicule and forced to make ignorant and contradictory statements. On July 21, in his closing speech, Darrow asked the jury to return a verdict of guilty in order that the case might be appealed. Under Tennessee law, Bryan was thereby denied the opportunity to deliver the closing speech. After eight minutes the jury returned with a guilty verdict, and the judge ordered Scopes to pay a fine of $100, the minimum the law allowed. Although Bryan had won the case, he had been publicly humiliated. Five days later, on July 26, he lay down for a Sunday afternoon nap and never woke up.

Also: On Thursday, July 16th, Rick is taking a bus group to the Trevilian Station Civil War battlefield in Louisa County. Trevilians was the largest all-cavalry battle in the Civil War.