16 November 1789

The El Dorado Fire in California, United States, was extinguished after 71 days, having destroyed 20 structures and killed one firefighter.

The first case of SARS, a zoonotic respiratory coronavirus disease, was recorded in Guangdong, China.

Chinese dissident Wei Jingsheng, released on ostensibly medical grounds after spending eighteen years in prison, was deported to the United States.

In Suffolk, England, a local man found the largest hoard of Roman silver and gold in Britain (sample pictured), including the largest collection of 4th- and 5th-century gold and silver coins ever discovered within the former Roman Empire.

About 30 million people watched the fictional couple Luke Spencer and Laura Webber wed on the television show General Hospital in the highest-rated hour in American soap opera history.

U.S. president Richard Nixon signed an act authorizing the construction of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline to transport oil from the Beaufort Sea to the Gulf of Alaska.

Aeroflot Flight 2230 crashed after takeoff from Koltsovo Airport, Russia, killing all 107 people aboard.

The Sound of Music, a musical by Rodgers and Hammerstein based on The Story of the Trapp Family Singers, opened on Broadway at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre.

World War II: Operation Queen commenced with one of the heaviest Allied tactical bombings of the war, attacking German targets in the Rur valley.

Swiss chemist Albert Hofmann first synthesized the psychedelic drug LSD in Basel, Switzerland.

World War I: Austro-Hungarian forces launched an assault against Serbian defensive positions at the Kolubara river, beginning the Battle of Kolubara.

After a five-day trial following the North-West Rebellion, Louis Riel, a Canadian Métis leader and "Father of Manitoba", was hanged for high treason.

American Revolutionary War: Fort Washington on Manhattan was captured from the Patriots by British and Hessian units.

American Revolutionary War: A Dutch fort on Sint Eustatius fired The First Salute to an American brig (pictured), marking the first international recognition of the American flag.

King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden was killed at the Battle of Lützen during the Thirty Years' War.

Spanish conquest of Peru: Conquistador Francisco Pizarro orchestrated a surprise attack in Cajamarca, capturing the Inca emperor, Atahualpa.

With the help of Stephen III and Stephen Báthory, Vlad the Impaler ousted Basarab the Old and became the ruler of Wallachia for the third time.

The second edition of the Code of Justinian, a codification of Roman law by Byzantine emperor Justinian I (pictured), was published.

Artemis Program: NASA launches Artemis 1 on the first flight of the Space Launch System, the start of the program's future missions to the moon.

Space Shuttle program: Space Shuttle Atlantis is launched on mission STS-129 to the International Space Station.

Following a 31-year wait, Australia defeats Uruguay in a penalty shootout to qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

Half-Life 2 is released, a game winning 39 Game of the Year awards and being cited as one of the best games ever made.

The first cases of the 2002–2004 SARS outbreak are traced to Foshan, Guangdong Province, China.

After nearly 18 years of incarceration, China releases Wei Jingsheng, a pro-democracy dissident, from jail for medical reasons.