On October 19

Canadian astronomer Robert Weryk discovered ʻOumuamua (depicted), the first known interstellar object detected passing through the Solar System.

British YouTube collective the Sidemen were formed as a Rockstar Games Social Club group in Grand Theft Auto Online.

Hurricane Wilma (pictured) became the most intense Atlantic hurricane on record with a minimum atmospheric pressure of 882 mbar (26.05 inHg).

The British government restricted the broadcast of the voices of representatives from Sinn Féin and several Irish republican and loyalist paramilitary groups on television and radio.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 22.6 percent on Black Monday, the largest one-day percentage decline in the stock market index's history.

Iran–Iraq War: U.S. Navy forces destroyed two Iranian oil platforms in the Persian Gulf in response to an Iranian missile attack on a Kuwaiti oil tanker three days earlier.

Vietnam War: The Siege of Plei Me began with the first major confrontation between soldiers of the North Vietnamese Army and the U.S. Army.

A group of ethnic Hutu military officers failed in their attempt to overthrow the Burundian government.

At a meeting of its general assembly, the European Broadcasting Union approved the staging of the first Eurovision Song Contest.

The Guatemalan Revolution began with a small group of army officers led by Francisco Javier Arana and Jacobo Árbenz launching a coup against dictator Jorge Ubico.

World War II: Allied aircraft sank the German cargo ship Sinfra, killing mostly Italian POWs.

First World War: Allied forces began engaging German troops at the First Battle of Ypres.

American Civil War: Despite incurring nearly twice as many casualties as the Confederates, the Union army emerged victorious at the Battle of Cedar Creek.

American Revolutionary War: British forces led by Lord Cornwallis officially surrendered to Franco-American forces under George Washington and the comte de Rochambeau, ending the Siege of Yorktown.

The Pennsylvania Gazette published a statement by Benjamin Franklin describing a kite experiment (depicted) to determine the electrical nature of lightning.

The Spanish ship San Felipe was shipwrecked on the Japanese island of Shikoku, and its cargo confiscated by the local daimyo.

A ceremony was held in Edinburgh marking the coming of age of James VI of Scotland as an adult ruler.