Leo Hendrik Baekeland (1863-1944), Belgium-born American chemist who invented Velox photographic paper (1893) and Bakelite (1907), an inexpensive, nonflammable, versatile, and popular plastic; in 1978, he was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame.
Charles Joseph Van Depoele (1846-1892), electrical engineer, inventor, and pioneer in electric railway technology .