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Events on February 5 in history

Leo Baekeland
1909Feb, 5

Belgian chemist Leo Baekeland announces the creation of Bakelite, the world's first synthetic plastic.

Leo Hendrik Baekeland

(November 14, 1863 – February 23, 1944) was a Belgian-American chemist. He is best known for the inventions of Velox photographic paper in 1893, and Bakelite in 1907. He has been called "The Father of the Plastics Industry": 13  for his invention of Bakelite, an inexpensive, non-flammable and versatile plastic, which marked the beginning of the modern plastics industry.

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Events on 1909

  • 9Jan

    Nimrod Expedition

    Ernest Shackleton, leading the Nimrod Expedition to the South Pole, plants the British flag 97 nautical miles (180 km; 112 mi) from the South Pole, the farthest anyone had ever reached at that time.
  • 28Jan

    Guantanamo Bay Naval Base

    United States troops leave Cuba with the exception of Guantanamo Bay Naval Base after being there since the Spanish-American War.
  • 22Feb

    Great White Fleet

    The sixteen battleships of the Great White Fleet, led by USS Connecticut, return to the United States after a voyage around the world.
  • 31Mar

    Bosnia and Herzegovina

    Serbia accepts Austrian control over Bosnia and Herzegovina.
  • 27Apr

    Abdul Hamid II

    Sultan of Ottoman Empire Abdul Hamid II is overthrown, and is succeeded by his brother, Mehmed V.