Falcon 1 becomes the first privately developed liquid-fuel ground-launched vehicle to put a payload into orbit by the RatSat mission.
The Democratic Progressive Party becomes the first opposition party in Taiwan.
Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser dies of a heart attack in Cairo.
CBS makes the first color televisions available for sale to the general public, but the product is discontinued less than a month later.
World War II: Soviet Army troops liberate Klooga concentration camp in Estonia.
World War II: The Drama uprising against the Bulgarian occupation in northern Greece begins.
World War II: Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union agree on a division of Poland.
World War II: The siege of Warsaw comes to an end.
The first aerial circumnavigation is completed by a team from the US Army.
World War I: The Fifth Battle of Ypres begins.
Corporal Frank S. Scott of the United States Army becomes the first enlisted man to die in an airplane crash.
The first night game for American football takes place in a contest between Wyoming Seminary and Mansfield State Normal.
The Battle of Alcolea causes Queen Isabella II of Spain to flee to France.
The Declaration of Independence of the Mexican Empire is drafted. It will be made public on 13 October.
American Revolution: French and American forces backed by a French fleet begin the siege of Yorktown.
American Revolution: Samuel Huntington is elected President of the Continental Congress, succeeding John Jay.
Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo of Portugal arrives at what is now San Diego, California. He is the first European in California.
Ottoman–Venetian War: The Ottoman Navy scores a decisive victory over a Holy League fleet in the Battle of Preveza.
Queen consort Gertrude of Merania is assassinated by a group of Hungarian lords.