Can anyone educate me on early plastic butt plates?

First, about when did plastic butt plates originate? I thought Bakelite came about in the 20’s. Plenty of older guns seem to have plastic butt plates. What is this early plastic?

Second, how do I clean and polish the stuff? I acquired an old Forehand Arms (pre 1899, I think) and the butt plate is some sort of plastic (featuring a squirrel). Soap seems to quickly oxidize this plastic. This has never happened to me before. How might I spiff it up?

I think some early plastic contains asbestos so I don’t know if I should go at it with the buffer. Advice appreciated.

I know a Forehand is hardly worth messing with but, it has a nice twist pattern. I wonder where they got their tubes from.

Thanks in advance.

You're probably looking at a butt plate cast from 'gutta percha'. It's a commonly used material to cast many different things in the last half of the 1800's and the early 1900's till plastics (like Bakelite) took over.
The material is made from the sap of the gutta percha tree.
Some call the material 'hard rubber' when refering to pistol grips and butt plates cast from the stuff,,but I don't know if they are one in the same materials.

Many of those older butt plates were made of hard rubber.

Hard rubber butplates (gutta percha, whatever) are made from a natural substance and oxidizes to a muddy looking grey-green-brown. Spiff it up with some black leather dye or a black permanent marker

You might also try some automotive products such as Mother's Back-To-Black (or whatever they call it now). Keep these products off the wood because most contain some silicone, and that could interfere with later refinishing.