Landmark designation

The American Chemical Society designated the separation of rare earth elements by Charles James a National Historic Chemical Landmark at the University of New Hampshire on October 29, 1999. The plaque commemorating the event reads:

Beginning in 1906, in a laboratory in Conant Hall, Charles James (1880-1928) devised novel fractional crystallization techniques for separating rare earth elements, which were widely adopted by other chemists. James used his method to separate large amounts of ytterbium, hitherto considered to be a single element, into two elements now known as ytterbium and lutetium. When the simultaneous isolation of lutetium was published in 1907 by Georges Urbain, James made no public claim for his own pioneering work. Despite his retiring nature, James was internationally recognized as an expert in rare earth chemistry. His highly purified rare earth specimens were in demand by research laboratories throughout the world.

Acknowledgments:

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The rare earths | Discovery | Chemistry at the University of New Hampshire: 1866-1928
Conant Hall | Charles James | Landmark designation and acknowledgments

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