Deaths on November 2

Thomas Midgley, Jr.

Died on November 2, 1944

Thomas Midgley, Jr., American chemist and engineer (b. 1889)

Thomas Midgley Jr. (May 18, 1889 – November 2, 1944) was an American mechanical and chemical engineer. He played a major role in developing leaded gasoline (Tetraethyllead) and some of the first chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), better known in the United States by the brand name Freon; both products were later banned from common use due to concerns about their impact on human health and the environment. He was granted more than 100 patents over the course of his career.

The New Scientist called him a "one-man environmental disaster".

References

Thomas Midgley, Jr.

Choose Another Date

Events on 1944

10 Apr

Auschwitz concentration camp
Rudolf Vrba and Alfréd Wetzler escape from Birkenau death camp.
13 Apr

Soviet Union
Diplomatic relations between New Zealand and the Soviet Union are established.
26 Jun

RAF
World War II: San Marino, a neutral state, is mistakenly bombed by the RAF based on faulty information, leading to 35 civilian deaths.
26 Aug

Charles de Gaulle
World War II: Charles de Gaulle enters Paris.
31 Dec

Nazi Germany
World War II: Hungary declares war on Nazi Germany.

Deaths on November 2

Thomas Midgley, Jr.

Died on November 2, 1944

References

Choose Another Date

Events on 1944

Auschwitz concentration camp

Soviet Union

RAF

Charles de Gaulle

Nazi Germany