Yes, There are Confirmed Shark Attacks in Missouri and Illinois

Yes, it's a rare occurrence, but yes it really has happened in both Missouri and Illinois. Shark attacks are not what you'd expect in the Midwest, but history tells us they have occurred and could happen again.

This topic has come up again after a graphic share on X/Twitter. Notice that both Missouri and Illinois are represented as being shark attack states.

Shark Attack Data shows the lone incident in Missouri happened at a boat show in 1996. Kathi Peters put her hand into a tank that contained 6 sharks and ended up with 5 puncture holes in her hand. Can't blame the sharks for that one.

CBS News reported that a boy in Illinois was attacked by a shark in 1955 while swimming in Lake Michigan, but that shark attack is a little more fuzzy as some claim it never happened. As of now, this incident is still listed as an official shark attack.

It's not impossible that another shark attack could happen in Missouri or Illinois in the future as 2 bull sharks did swim all the way up the Mississippi River to Alton a few years ago.

Would I recommend that you lose sleep over whether a shark attack will happen to you in Missouri or Illinois? Nonsense. But, it's not impossible and that's a pretty amazing fact when you think about it.