November 18 in History

Significant events that happened on this day.

Historical Events

2013

A rare Beatles album autographed by all four members sold at auction for $290,500

The signed 'Please Please Me' LP was purchased by a collector who paid $6,000 times its estimate. What made it extraordinary was that it was signed th...

2003

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled that the state's ban on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional

Major

In Goodridge v. Department of Public Health, the court became the first in the US to rule that same-sex couples had a constitutional right to marry. T...

1997

The Southbound Peacock, painted by Chinese artist Chen Chong Ping, sold for $8.9 million in Shanghai

This made it the most expensive piece of contemporary Chinese art at the time. The painting depicted a white peacock in a minimalist style. The sale s...

1993

Twenty-one members of the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging stormed the World Trade Centre in Johannesburg during negotiations to end apartheid

Armed right-wing militants crashed an armored vehicle through the glass facade of the building where constitutional negotiations were taking place. Th...

1991

Shiite Muslim kidnappers in Lebanon released British hostage Terry Waite after 1,763 days in captivity

The envoy for the Archbishop of Canterbury had been held hostage since 1987, much of it in solitary confinement. Ironically, he had traveled to Lebano...

1963

The first push-button telephone was made available to AT&T customers

After decades of rotary dials, touch-tone phones debuted with their distinctive beeping sounds. The technology was faster and more reliable, though AT...

1939

Margaret Mitchell won the National Book Award for 'Gone with the Wind'

The sweeping Civil War epic had already sold millions of copies and been adapted into the blockbuster film released earlier that year. Mitchell, a for...

1936

The main span of the Golden Gate Bridge was joined, connecting both sides of the San Francisco Bay

Workers connected the two massive cables spanning the 4,200-foot main span, completing the bridge's signature structure. At the time, it was the longe...

1928

Mickey Mouse appeared in his first sound cartoon, 'Steamboat Willie,' at the Colony Theatre in New York

Major

While not Mickey's first appearance, this synchronized sound cartoon made him a star and revolutionized animation. Walt Disney himself provided Mickey...

1903

The United States and Panama signed the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty, giving the US control of the Panama Canal Zone

Major

Just 15 days after Panama declared independence from Colombia (with US support), the new nation granted America rights to build and control a canal ac...

1883

American and Canadian railroads adopted five standard time zones, ending the chaos of hundreds of local times

Major

Before this date, every town kept its own local time based on the sun's position, creating nightmare scheduling for railways. Railroad companies unila...

1626

St. Peter's Basilica in Rome was consecrated after 120 years of construction

Major

Pope Urban VIII consecrated the largest church in the world, built over the tomb of St. Peter. The massive Renaissance and Baroque structure replaced...

1307

William Tell supposedly shot an apple off his son's head with a crossbow

According to legend, the Swiss folk hero was forced by Austrian authorities to shoot an apple placed on his son's head as punishment for not bowing to...