Historical Events on September 6
- 1847: Author Henry David Thoreau leaves Walden Pond and moves in with Ralph Waldo Emerson in Concord, Massachusetts.
- 1861: Union General Ulysses S. Grant seizes Paducah, Kentucky. This gives the Union Army full control of the mouth of the Tennessee River.
- 1863: Morris Island and Battery Wagner are evacuated by the Confederate Army during the American Civil War.
- 1916: Piggly Wiggly opens up in Memphis, Tennessee. It’s considered to be the first self-service grocery store.
- 1939: South Africa declares war on Nazi Germany during World War II.
- 1944: During WWII, Allied forces liberate Ypres, Belgium.
- 1944: The Soviets capture Tartu, Estonia.
- 1946: S Secretary of State James F. Byrnes tells the press that the United States will adhere to a policy of economic reconstruction in Germany.
- 1976: Soviet Air Force pilot Lieutenant Viktor Belenko lands his MiG-25 jet fighter on Hokkaido Island in Japan and formally requests that the U.S give him political asylum. The United States grants him his requested asylum.
- 1991: The independence of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania is recognized by the Soviet Union.
- 1991: Leningrad’s name is changed back to St. Petersburg.
Famous Birthdays on September 6
- American comedian and actress Jane Curtin is born in 1947.
- American guitarist Claydes Charles Smith is born in 1948.
- American singer-songwriter Buddy Miller is born in 1952.
- American author and playwright Raymond Benson is born in 1955.
- American basketball player Kevin Willis is born in 1962.
- American author Alice Sebold is born in 1963.
- Irish poet and author Christopher Nolan is born in 1965.
- American singer-songwriter and actress Macy Gray is born in 1967.
- Scottish author Christopher Brookmyre is born in 1968.
- American author and illustrator Tony DiTerlizzi is born in 1969.
- American rapper Foxy Brown is born in 1979.
- Nigerian boxer Samuel Peter is born in 1980.
- American baseball player Mark Teahen is born in 1981.