The historic Rhea County Courthouse will be getting a facelift in advance of the 100th anniversary of the Scopes Evolution Trial that put Dayton on the map.
The Rhea County Commission moved to start the grant process for $250,000 for a major renovation of the 134-year-old facility. The county will have to match the grant with $111,785, which will come from the hotel/motel tax. Included in the grant will be repair of the exterior clock tower as well as the tower bell, and major repair to the Historic Courtroom where William Jennings Bryan and Clarence Darrow conducted the trial. The original flooring and windows in the second floor courtroom will be replaced. Also included will be making the first and second floor bathrooms ADA compliant. County Executive Jim Vincent had already started trying to make one bathroom ADA compliant but ran into trouble with finding a contractor to complete the work.
Already, State Rep. Ron Travis, R-Dayton, announced $72,000 in grant funding was awarded to Rhea County for museum and historic site improvements.
Those funds are part of a $5 million appropriation approved by the General Assembly in the 2024-25 state budget for Tennessee State Museum Capital Maintenance and Improvement program.
“While Rhea County is notoriously known for the Scopes Trial, if you dive deeper, you would be amazed at the rich history in our community,” Rep. Travis said. “This grant funding will help county leaders make necessary improvements to best serve citizens and visitors from across the nation. I greatly appreciate the Tennessee State Museum for their support.”
Rep. Travis had already secured 700,000 for repair to the courthouse roof.
The dark red brick courthouse was built in 1891 on the square after it had burnt down in 1869 surrounded by Market Street, 2nd Avenue, Court Street, and 3rd Avenue. W. Chamberlin & Company from Knoxville designed this Romanesque Revival-Italian Villa Style Courthouse. In 1929 the courthouse had a fire in the second-floor courtroom, but it was quickly extinguished by the Dayton Fire Department.
The courthouse was put on the National Historic Landmark Register in 1976. The building was restored in 1979. The courthouse has a working clock tower, veterans’ memorials, and service flags.
The Scopes Trial was held in the courthouse and on the grounds under the shade trees from July 10-21, 1925, in which a high school teacher, John T. Scopes, was accused of violating Tennessee's Butler Act, which had made it illegal for teachers to teach human evolution in any state-funded school. The trial was deliberately staged in order to attract publicity to the small town of Dayton, Tn., where it was held.
Rhea County was created on Dec. 7, 1807, from Roane County as the 34th county. The county is named for American Revolutionary hero John Rhea. Old Washington was the first county seat and was later moved to Smith’s Crossroads, which was later renamed Dayton.
The Scopes Trial Museum is located in the courthouse basement and contains such memorabilia as the microphone used to broadcast the trial, trial records, photographs, and an audiovisual history of the trial.