Sydney H. Ball

[1] He became an assistant geologist to the United States Geological Survey (USGS) in 1903 and in this role was one of the first researchers to investigate prehistoric Native American gem mining.

[4] Ball's 1907 work A Geologic Reconnaissance in Southwestern Nevada and Eastern California may have been responsible for starting a myth that Death Valley was named "Tomesha" ("Ground Afire") by the Paiute, a story often repeated by subsequent publications.

[5][6] He also contributed to a study of the geology of Georgetown, Kentucky, carried out by Josiah Edward Spurr and George Garrey that was published as a book in 1908.

[8][9] Ball, with United States explorer Richard Mohun and mining engineer Alfred Chester Beatty, were tasked with finding deposits of gold, copper and coal in the Forminière concession in the Belgian Congo.

[8][13][1][11] The discovery of diamonds opened a new source of revenue for the colony and many subsequent American expeditions were carried out in search of further deposits.