When was fluorine first isolated?

Fluorine was first isolated by Henri Moissan in 1886 after years of dangerous experiments. He used an electrochemical method to separate the element, which is extremely reactive and attacks many materials, including glass. Because fluorine is so corrosive and hazardous, isolating it was one of the great challenges of 19th-century chemistry. Moissan later received the 1906 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for this work.