Leo Baekeland
Leo Henricus Arthur Baekeland (November 14, 1863 – February 23, 1944) was a Belgian-born American chemist. He invented Velox photographic paper in 1893 and Bakelite in 1907. His invention of Bakelite, an inexpensive, nonflammable, versatile, and popular plastic, marked the beginning of the modern plastics industry.