Family members runlumber, newspapers, and petrochemicals businesses. The land conservancy act will protect more than 500 species of vertebrates. 150,000 acres Second-generation president, Allyn Ford (degrees from Stanford, Yale), keeps reforestation and recycling science at the core of his management of Rosenberg Forestry Products. The Singleton family owns 1,110,000 acres in New Mexico and California. According to his company bio, investor Arthur Nicholas made his fortune by systematizing, the process of using dynamic quantitative models to find value-added performance. He may or may not be talking about his cow and horse breeding efforts in Wyoming. The land and livestock division has 37 farms and 15 ranches with capacity for 30,000 mother cows. The online retailing billionaire who founded Amazon and is among the wealthiest people in the world owns 420,000 acres, which is about three times the size of Guam. But did you know that relatively few people hold the reins on vast expanses of the country's pastures? Boyd's Frying Pan Ranch was originally made up of 95 sections in the Texas Panhandle, which was one of the first areas to test out barbed-wire fencing over 130 years ago. Today, the familys private holdings in Texas and Florida make up one of the largest cattle operations in the country. Roughly equal to: Three times the size of New York City. And the land, while private, is still use for commercial purposes, the 24/7 Wall Street investigation found. CNN founder Ted Turner, 4. logging industry Reed. He made sure the Land 100 knew he managed to add three acres to his tally this year. Ol A.S. bequeathed the private land to his daughters. Roughly equal to: Twice the size of Chicago. His properties include the 11,830 Broseco Ranch, which contains two lakes that are 100 acres in size. 49. Stefan Soloviev:325,077 acres in New Mexico, Kansas and Texas. Roughly equal to: Half the size of Rhode Island. Williams made the mistake of likening rape to bad weather (If its inevitable, just relax and enjoy it) and faced accusations of going to a Mexican brothel called the Chicken Ranch while in college. 119,000 acres Bass family Land. Oil and drilling profits helped him buy a sportsmans paradise in the Big Bend area of Far West Texas. This ranking is current as of the end of 2018. Background: Holland Ware's fortunes in the timber industry began in the early 50s with his first purchase of 100 acres for $10 when he was 15 years old. It is a wonderful life. Land: Ranchlands and farms in Texas and Florida. The former media tycoon made his wealth building the company Tele-Communications Inc., or TCI, which he sold to AT&T for $50 billion 20 years ago. Ford made a career in the timber business during the Great Depression. Clayton was set to bring his cowboy image to the Texas governorship until a set of gaffs derailed the campaign in 1990. Background: Red Emmerson is president of Sierra Pacific Industries, a family-run lumber manufacturing business that ranks as California's largest private landowner. Were basically just marketing grass, he told Western Horseman, and the cows are a way to market the grass.. The cowboy favorite is buttermilk piesugar, eggs and rich dairy products loaded into a couple of pie pans. The Hamer family owns some 600,000 acres of land, largely forest in West Virginia. Shannon's farming and ranching operations produce peanuts, corn, wheat, dairy, and cattle. 150,000 acres Roughly equal to: The size of San Antonio. In Rural America, Right-to-Repair Laws are the Leading Edge of a Pushback Meet the Modern Graziers Who Broke Into Regenerative Agriculture, No Farmland Required, 7 Smokable Plants You Can Grow That Arent Marijuana, Sustainable Farmers See Promise in New Financing Options, New Solar Panels Allow Farmers to See the Light, The Buzzy Edible Insect Trend is Gaining Traction in the West. The family behind logging company Sierra Pacific Industries (SPI) with land holdings twice the size of Rhode Island. Real estate mogul and owner of the Los Angeles Rams, Stan Kroenke, owns 1.4 million acres of land in the United States, including a 124,000 acre ranch in Montana and additional land in Wyoming. Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. Other than buying and selling financial institutions at huge markups, Ford has a deep love of the land. Because if youre going to go softwood sawmill, you want to make it state-of-the-art. Hughes family: 390,000 acres in Texas. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience. Then there's the Killiams at No. His purchase of the enormous Corn Ranch in West Texas was part nostalgia and part business. By the way, what is it about land that makes people want to number their children? . To determine the largest landowners in the United States, 24/7 Wall St . The federal government is the top landowner in New Mexico, controlling over 24 million acres. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. Collier was the largest landholder in the state at the time of his death. Background: Gerald Lyda's success in construction and land development in the 70s allowed him to return to ranching and amass over 900,000 acres within his lifetime. J.G. Plans for his land in Wyoming include building billed as one of the largest in the world. Have some feedback for us? 40. Roughly equal to: Half the size of Connecticut. 373,000 acres 1,250,000 acres 46. Land: Oil and gas divisions throughout the West and Southwest; timber units across Maine, Oklahoma, and the Southeast. Top 100 Largest Landowners Of Private Property In The United States Own Roughly 40 Million Acres Equalling 2% Of The Country's Total Land. Roughly equal to: 2,500 times the size of Vatican City. A forest products firm with Forest Stewardship Council-certified forests in California, Oregon and West Virginia California, Oregon, West Virginia, and one of the largest private holdings in Pennsylvania. here is a look at how much land the government owns in every state, The Land Report magazines 2018 Land Report, Growing 600lbs of gourmet mushrooms a week, Wisconsin's dairy industry would collapse without them, Here is a look at the richest person in every state, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. Their historic 55,709-acre Rockpile Ranch in Far West Texas is listed for $54.8 million. 247,000 acres Roughly equal to: Five times the size of Chicago. 25. Bass family:285,000 acres in Texas. Forget accusations of slave labor practices at the Fanjuls sugar plantations in the Dominican Republic. His land ownership in New Mexico will likely expand as the space industry develops. A.S. Gages headquarters is now a high end hotel in Marathon, Texas, but it once centered more than half a million acres of grazing lands. 149,000 acres His marriage to Ann Walkton Kroenke, an heir to the Wal-Mart fortune, likely adds to his good fortune. Land: The Singleton ranches comprise of 29 ranches across California and New Mexico, including the picturesque San Cristobal Ranch outside of Santa Fe. Vermejo Park is the only Turner ranch operating as a full-service guest ranch. Kroenke adds Broken O to Q Creek Ranch, the largest contiguous ranch in the Rocky Mountains at 540,000 acres. Malone made his fortune as a media tycoon, building the company Tele-Communications, Inc, or TCI, and acting as its CEO before selling it to AT&T for $50 billion in 1999. Buck, who as owner of Tall Timber Trust, one of the largest owners of timberland in Maine, controls 925,00 acres. The Langdale Company, which started with a crop of turpentine timber, claims to have planted more trees than theyve cut since the 1930s. The Lykes heirs own in Florida a 337,000 acre ranch, which includes sugar cane and cattle operations, as well as a 264,555 acre ranch in west Texas. What luck. 278,000 acres Youd think that growing tobacco would be a surefire way to earn a place on the Land 100, but Umphrey made his fortune suing tobacco companies. Few can claim the title of cowboy philanthropist. Other than running significant cattle farms, Mechenbier and his wife help finance orphanages in New Mexico. Both the Family's 06 Ranch and Leoncita Cattle Company Ranch are in West Texas. Both Zane and Tanya were born into ranching families. Land: Approximately two million acres of forestland in California and Washington. All these logging guys love to tote the sustainability of their operations. Doesnt run nearly the profile of her father, Wilard Garvey, who bought the ranch. Family members have oil interests. Today, his family owns some 280,000 acres, primarily in Collier County, which is named after him. JOHN MALONE: 2.2 million acres in Colorado, New Mexico, Wyoming, Maine . Loves land and his wife loves horses, which explains #1s 2013 acquisitions. From Ted Turner to Jeff Bezos to the federal government, New Mexico has some of the biggest landowners in the nation. According the company, it turns out that Frac Techs specialty-hydraulic fracturing is one of the two drivers powering the U.S. energy renaissance. Many of them inherited land bought cheap at the turn of. The Killam family deals largely in cattle and oil, with ranches in Texas and Oregon and oil operations in Louisiana, Nebraska, Kansas, Arkansas, and Texas. 125,000 acres Reed family:1.7 million acresWashington, Oregon, and California. Crosby Land and Trust which was once a chemicals company is hoping to turn the forests of the American South into biofuels as well as lumber. The mammoth ranch spans eight Nebraska counties and yields plenty of alfalfa and millet for the herd. steve@mfi-miami.com; Free Call: (888) 737-6344; . His purchase of the Sierra Grande Lodge and Spa brings tourists closer to two of his landmark properties and, ya know, space. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. Crowbar Beggs for getting them to the list. We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. Heirs of the late Thomas O'Connor, who immigrated to the United States from Ireland in the 1800s, own over half a million acres, including the O'Connor Ranch in south Texas. 150,000 acres 149,702 acres 27. Dan and Farris Wilks Who Owns Montana's Largest Ranch? Kizer has farming and ranching operations that produce peanuts, corn, wheat, dairy, and cattle. Roughly equal to: Half the size of Lake Ontario. Estimates are based on information from published reports, online databases, tax records, and information provided by various landowners, and include only rural land holdings. Today, his living family members own over 311,000 acres of land in northern California and western Pennsylvania. and J.E. The Austin-based family partnership climbed the rankings with a couple of add-ons to their New Mexico and Texas ranches. Just as theres a language around buying a car, theres a dialect for selling bull semen. Zane & Tanya Kiehne:345,000 acres in New Mexico and Texas. A study found that 31 million acres, or 1.4 per cent of the country's total land mass, is under the control of the private owners, who are noticeably wealthy, white and older. 244,332 acres Ford family: 580,000 acresin Oregon. Baron Collier was an advertising executive who developed land and infrastructure in southern Florida. Roughly equal to: Twice the size of Badlands National Park. 560,000 acres 2023 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Satellite Information Network, LLC. Two of the largest owners of land in Florida are the Fanjul family with their Florida Crystals sugar cane . The largest landowner in the U.S. is probably not someone you've heard of. You could spend weeks exploring the property. Horizontal drilling.). 301,500 acres Manages ranches only fit for the best cowboys. They make money by leasing the state trust land to a multitude of companies. Mike Smith owns nearly 300,000 acres, which are primarily spread throughout eastern Texas. Herbert Westervelt started a paper company in the late 1800s. Background: After Mark Reed married the daughter of Sol Simpson at the turn of the century, the Reed family continues to operate the privately owned Simpson Investment Company that is one of the oldest forest products companies in the Pacific Northwest. In addition, they bring jobs and economic growth with their investments in the aerospace and other industries. The decrease is a result of homesteading and land grants. Spanning over 3.5 million square miles, the United States is the third largest country in the world by landmass, trailing only China and Russia. In 1870, Dr. Howell Tyson Lykes gave up the practice of medicine to take over his familys 500 acres in Florida. 163,800 acres Ira Wines, who works the familys prized Spanish Ranch, doesnt have times for greenhorns. Then theres the Department of Defense handling 4.6% of the land. 189,000 acres