7 Largest Landowners In The State Of Wyoming

The US State of Wyoming is a sprawling state known for its seven national parks, most notably, Yellowstone, which is the country’s oldest national park.

Visitors flock there by the millions to see the famed Old Faithful Geyser and its enticing hot springs which clock in at 200-degrees F.

Tourists also visit the state to see Devil’s Tower, a rock formation that is considered sacred to the native American tribes, that was declared the first national monument by President Theodore Roosevelt in the early 1900s.

Wyoming is also known for around 40 percent of the country’s coal.

The parcels of land that are now within the borders of Wyoming were prime places for trappers and traders due to the abundant wildlife. The land is part of the Rocky Mountains range that runs from Canada to New Mexico.

The land is still primarily wild, making Wyoming the least populated state in the country.

And consider this: Wyoming is the 10^th largest land area compared to all other US states. 

Agriculture is one of the state’s major industries due to the abundance of open, undeveloped land.

If you happen to be looking for ranch land, the Wyoming counties of Big Horn, Teton, Lincoln and Goshen have the highest production of cattle, letting land owners raise more cattle on less land.

Property owners in Wyoming take advantage of this pristine land to primarily run ranches to raise cattle. 

Here are the largest landowners in Wyoming.

1. US Federal Government

Perhaps to the surprise of some, the US government is the largest landowner in Wyoming with just under 30 million acres, which is actually 48% of the total land in Wyoming.

The US government is actually the largest landowner is many states. For example, in Oregon, the government owns 32.6 million acres and in Nevada 56 million acres.

The land is primarily owned by 3 government organizations: the Bureau of Land Management, the Forest Service, Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, and the Department of Defense. In Wyoming, of the total 30 million acres owned by the government, 18.6 million acres are owned by the Bureau of Land Management.

2. Stan Kroenke

Owner of Q Creek Ranch, the biggest ranch in all of the Rocky Mountains.

It is a mind-blowing 550,000 acres belonging to Kroenke, in addition to other ranches in Arizona, Montana and Texas. All told, these make him one of the wealthiest landowners in the entire country. 

Although the Q Creek Ranch was launched to be just a horse ranch, it has been expanded over the years to include cattle and sheep. Their full-time ranchers and cowboys live in a bunkhouse beneath Shirley Mountain.

The ranch is also open to the public, welcoming guests onto the property to fish for trout or hunt game animals. They also get a glimpse of the old-fashioned cowboy lifestyle.

3. The Taylor Family

This family owns Lone Tree Ranch, with more than 70,000 acres and is one of the largest deeded properties in the entire state of Wyoming.

The ranch is located in the Henry’s Fork River Valley. They raise around 2,000 grass-fed cattle every year, and the ranch is also a site for prolific elk, deer and antelope hunting.

The Taylor family’s ranching techniques place an emphasis on sustaining high-quality wildlife and fishery habitats. They have received numerous awards for these environmental efforts.

4. Pfister Land Company

This is the group that owns and operates Cottonwood Canyon Ranch.

The 60,000 acre cattle ranch is located close to Big Horn County. The site is comprised of irrigation land and a cattle ranch.

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5. Armando “John” Flocchini II

This is the individual who owns Durham Ranch located near Wright county.

This 55,000 bison ranch was stocked with bison sourced from Yellowstone National Park in 1964.

6. Gerry and Kevin Geis

The Geis family owns and operates the 30,000 acres Geis Cattle and Sheep Ranch just south of the city of Gillete.

The owners are clear that the farm is run by the whole family! They currently have roughly 350 cow/calf pairs and 2,000 head of sheep.

7. The Resor Family

Family that owns Snake River Ranch, the largest deeded ranch in Jackson Hole, consisting of more than 5,000 acres.

The ranch was originated by advertising mogul Stanley Resor and his wife to be used as a vacation home, but was always an operating ranch. The property has been passed down through the generations and is now run by his grandchildren, who raise natural beef along the banks of the Snake River.

In the early 2000s, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.