On September 18, several significant historical events occurred:

• In 1931, the Mukden Incident took place where the Japanese army used the pretext of an explosion along its railway to occupy Mukden in Manchuria, which led to Japan extending control over all of Manchuria within three months.

• In 1793, President George Washington laid the cornerstone of the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., a symbol of American democracy.

• Chile declared its independence from Spain in 1810, which is celebrated as its National Day.

• The Great Fire of Moscow in 1812 ended after devastating the city, destroying more than 75% of it during Napoleon's invasion.

• In 1850, the U.S. Congress passed the Fugitive Slave Act, a controversial law requiring escaped enslaved people to be returned to their owners, which increased tensions leading to the Civil War.

• The first issue of The New York Times was published in 1851.

• The United Nations Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld died in a plane crash in 1961 while on a peace mission.

• Legendary rock guitarist Jimi Hendrix died in London in 1970.

• In 1998, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) was founded.

Additionally, notable births on September 18 include Swedish actress Greta Garbo (1905) and American actor James Gandolfini (1961).

These events reflect a wide range of historical, political, and cultural moments associated with the date September 18.