*sigh* Electrical issues (Fuse box?)

1998 Cherokee Country 4.0 AW4 4x4

Please forgive the long post-- but you need to know it all before you can give advise (which I desperately need)

I bought this thing as a salvage vehicle-- ran great, just needed a few cosmetics... got it all fixed and then...

The dome/courtesy lights, gauges, and radio quit...

all the lights work on the cluster; backlights, CEL, brake, turn signals, all that, just not the gauges themselves...

I did search on here and it is not the common problem found at the back of the cluster....

So I check the manual and sure enough Fuse # 16 on the fuse box in the fuse for courtesy lamps/radio/and intrument cluster...

Its a good fuse... so I put a test light on the connection for that fuse... no worky... test the fuse below it... its good.

So I begin the process of pulling the fuse panel out to see if the connections on the back are good... but I'm running out of time and light, so I got all three of the bolts out and pulled it off the panel and realizing that I didn't have the time to unplug everthing to get it all the way out and look at the back, I put it back on and bolted it back up, ready to go home..... then

nothing... no power to anything.. nowhere... all dead...

I am very mechanically inclined, but when it come to electrical, I know just enough to get me in trouble... (obviously)....

Please help!!!!

--signed
forever in your debt

anyone? anybody out there? hellooooooooo?

Did you disconnect the negative battery terminal BEFORE messing with the fuse block?

If NOT, then CharlesS is correct and you likely blew a main fuse at the PDC.

Ok-- Probelm fixed-- and the Factory service manual is WRONG!

I did disconnect the negartive battery terminal before I meesed with the fuse block.... but when I tightend the fuse block back I didn't tighten the middle blot enough... tightened it back an my power came back

as for the intrument cluster/dome & courtest lights and radio fuse-- itr is NOT in the # 16 position under the dash-- it is in the Power distribution box under the hood... # 26 I think.... new fuse-- all fixed...