On May 6, the following notable historical events related to Missouri occurred:

• 1806: St. Louis, a Missouri trade hub, saw peak spring fur trading with Native American tribes, though no specific event is noted.
• 1820: President James Monroe signed the Missouri Compromise, allowing Missouri to enter the Union as a slave state alongside Maine as a free state, balancing congressional power.

• 1861: Union General Henry W. Halleck in St. Louis fortified federal control, while Confederate guerrillas in rural Missouri launched spring attacks, fueling Civil War strife.
• 1864: Confederate General Sterling Price’s Missouri forces in Arkansas prepared for spring operations, with Missouri itself under Union control and minimal Confederate action.
• 1888: Southeast Missouri’s Missouri Pacific Railroad, linking Cape Girardeau to markets, drove economic growth, with mid-May freight operations thriving.
• 1929: Missouri’s Kansas City and St. Louis reeled from Great Depression unemployment, with spring public works projects providing temporary relief.
• 1941: Missouri’s St. Louis and Kansas City boosted World War II manufacturing, with mid-May recruitment focusing on military production roles.