1. On March 21, 1861, Missouri Governor Claiborne F. Jackson signed legislation that authorized the state’s secession from the United States. However, Missouri did not officially secede and instead remained a divided state throughout the Civil War, with both Confederate and Union forces present.

2. In 1965, the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri was completed on March 21. The Arch, which is 630 feet tall and 630 feet wide, is the tallest man-made monument in the United States and serves as a symbol of St. Louis’ role as the gateway to the west.

3. On March 21, 1981, the Ozark National Scenic Riverways were established in southeastern Missouri. The Riverways preserve the natural and cultural resources of the Current and Jacks Fork Rivers, which flow through the rugged and scenic Ozark Hills.

4. Missouri native and legendary composer Scott Joplin was born on March 21, 1868, in Texarkana, Texas. Joplin spent much of his life in Missouri, where he composed and published some of the most iconic and influential ragtime music of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

5. On March 21, 1934, notorious gangster John Dillinger and his gang were surrounded by FBI agents at a rented apartment in St. Paul, Minnesota. The ensuing gun battle became known as the “St. Paul Shootout” and resulted in the deaths of two of Dillinger’s gang members as well as an FBI agent. Dillinger himself managed to escape yet again.