The Monkey Trial – Today In Southern History
24 July 1925
24 July 1925
On this date in 1925…
The Scopes “Monkey Trial” ended in Dayton, Tennessee, with John T. Scopes convicted of violating a state law against teaching Darwin’s theory of evolution. Scopes was fined $100 plus court costs. His conviction was later overturned on a technicality.
Other Years:
1684 – An expedition to establish a French colony in Louisiana leaves La Rochelle with four ships led by René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle. The expedition ends in disaster with only 15 survivors
1758 – George Washington was admitted to the Virginia House of Burgesses representing Frederick County
1824 – A newspaper publishes results for the first public opinion poll, showing a clear lead for Andrew Jackson as president
1836 – Creek Indians defeated Georgia militia in a brief fight near Wesley Chapel in present-day Stewart County, Georgia.
1864 – The second Battle of Kernstown, Virginia.
1866 – Tennessee became the first state to be readmitted to the US.
1900 – Black rioters in New Orleans, LA kill two white policemen
1901 – Writer William Sydney Porter, better known by his pen name of O. Henry was released from prison in Austin, Texas after serving three years for bank embezzlement.
1919 – A black riot in Washington, D.C., killed 6 and injured 100
1937 – The state of Alabama dropped charges against the “Scottsboro Boys,” five young black men accused of raping a white woman in Scottsboro, Alabama.
1952 – A temperature of 112°F was recorded in Louisville, GA setting a state record high
1965 – Missouri native Casey Stengel resigned as manager of the NY Mets
2023 – The Biden Justice department sued Texas over a floating barrier installed in the Rio Grande river to deter illegal alien crossings
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