- 1854 – Charge of the Light Brigade: 670 British cavalrymen fighting in the Crimean War attacked a heavily fortified Russian position and were killed.
- 1929 – Teapot Dome scandal: Interior Secretary Albert B. Fall was found guilty of accepting a bribe while in office. He was the first presidential Cabinet member convicted of a crime.
- 1962 – Adlai Stevenson shows photos at a meeting of the United Nations Security Council proving that Soviet missiles had been installed in Cuba.
- 1971 – The United Nations admitted China as a member, ousting the Nationalist Chinese government of Taiwan.
- 1983 – The United States invaded Grenada, rescuing 1,000 American students and restoring order to the country.
- 2002 – Democratic Senator Paul Wellstone of Minnesota and seven others were killed in the crash of a small plane about 180 miles northeast of Minneapolis.
