FRESNO DESK - Dr. Wilbur Ball, a professor emeritus of International Agriculture and Education at Fresno State University has died on Sunday at age 75 in Eaton, Colo., of pancreatic cancer.
He served as a rural education consultant in Sudan and the Phillippines and was a recognized authority on third-world agronomy.
Ball, wrote 18 books about prairie life. Born in Briggsdale, Colo., and received a master's degree in agricultural education from Colorado State University and a doctorate in agricultural education and engineering from Iowa State University.
He taught in the Philippines and the Sudan before settling at Fresno, where he was a professor for 25 years. Among his books were Stories of the West, Buggy Trails and Life on the Homestead.
He also became known as a historian and tour guide for the Pawnee National Grasslands near Greeley, Colo.
After retiring from teaching, Ball hiked more than 5,000 miles across the prairies, befriending farmers and ranchers.
