Approximately 60% of land in the United States is privately owned, and just a few individuals and families control a significant proportion of this land.
The largest landowners in the United States are the Emmerson Family, John Malone, the Reed Family, Ted Turner, and the Kroenke Ranch. The Emmerson Family is the largest landowner with 2.3 million acres of land across California, Washington state, and Oregon.
Private land plays a significant role in conservation. According to the World Resource Institute, property rights (people’s legal right to own, use, and sell land, resources, and other goods) provide an incentive for landowners to use natural resources sustainably. Property rights can:
- Prevent ecosystem degradation
- Encourage the provision of ecosystem services
- Promote investment in conservation and efficient resource use
Largest Landowner By State
Alabama
The McDonald Family owns about 100,000 acres in Alabama. Alabama Power owns over 61,000 acres.
Alaska
Doyon Limited is the largest private landowner in Alaska and North America. Doyon Limited has a land entitlement of 12.5 million acres. In Alaska, Doyon’s land stretches from the Alaska-Canada border almost to the Norton Sound in the west.
Arizona
Babbitt Ranches is the largest landowner in Arizona, with 750,000 acres and 270,000 acres owned by the family business.
Arkansas
With 711,000 acres, the Weyerhaeuser Company owns the largest amount of land in Arkansas.
California
Sierra Pacific Industries is the largest private landowner in California. Sierra Pacific owns approximately 2 million acres in California, 300,000 in Washington, and 175,000 in Oregon.
Colorado
The largest landowner in Colorado is John Malone, with 270,000 acres, He is the second largest landowner in the United States with 2.2 million acres of property.
District of Columbia
The largest landowner in the District of Columbia is the Federal Government (owning 12,000 acres), followed by the Catholic Church.
Florida
The Mormon Church is the largest landowner in Florida, with a total of 678,000 acres purchased.
Georgia
Plum Creek, a company that merged with the Weyerhaeuser Company, is Georgia’s largest private landowner, with a total of 750,000 acres in timberland.
Hawaii
Behind the state of Hawaii and the U.S. Government, Kamehameha Schools is the single largest landowner in Hawaii, with 362,000 acres on the island of Hawaii, Oahu, and Maui.
Idaho
The Holding Family is the largest landowner in Idaho, with over 400,000 acres. The family’s land includes the Sun Valley Ski Resort in Sun Valley, Idaho.
Illinois
The Church of Jesus Chris of Latter-day Saints, also called the Mormon Church, is the largest landowner in the state of Illinois with 38,000 acres.
Indiana
Tom Farms, owned by Kip Tom, is the largest private landowner in Indiana. Tom Farms owns 20,000 acres in Indiana and Argentina.
Kansas
Philip Anschutz owns the largest corporate farms in the state at 250,000 acres. It’s called Baughman Farms.
Kentucky
Brad Kelley is the largest landowner in Kentucky and is also the eighth-largest private landowner in the United States, with a total of 1.13 million acres. Brad Kelley is the owner of Calumet Farm, which had three starters in the 2017 Kentucky Derby and Lonely Planet.
Louisiana
Roy O. Martin III is the largest private landowner in Louisiana, with 550,000 acres.
Maine
J.D. Irving is the largest landowner in Maine and is the only industrial landowner with roughly 1.25 million acres. John Malone, the second-largest landowner in the U.S., owns 980,000 acres throughout the state as well.
Massachusetts
W.D. Cowls, Inc. is the largest private landowner in Massachusetts. Cowls, Inc. has successfully purchased and conserved over 5,500 acres of forest.
Michigan
Plum Creek, a lumber company that recently merged with Weyerhaeuser Company, is the largest private landowner in Michigan after purchasing 650,000 acres in 2005.
Minnesota
The Molpus Woodlands Group is the largest landowner in Minnesota, with 286,000 acres.
Mississippi
The largest landowner in Mississippi is Gaylon Lawrence, Jr., which owns more than 180,000 acres of land.
Missouri
Pioneer Forest is the largest private landowner in Missouri, with 146,000 acres.
Montana
Plum Creek Timber Inc, which recently merged with Weyerhaeuser Company, owns 765,000 acres.
Nebraska
Ted Turner, who is also the owner of CNN, is the largest private landowner in Nebraska, with over 500,000 acres. He is the fourth-largest private landowner in the United States, with roughly 2 million acres.
Nevada
Paul Fireman is the largest landowner in Nevada, owning the Winecup Gamble Ranch that encompasses roughly 247,000 acres.
New Hampshire
John Malone owns the most land in New Hampshire, 23,000 acres, and is also the second-largest private landowner in the United States.
New Mexico
Henry Singleton, a corporate executive from Beverly Hills, CA, owns over 1.2 million acres across New Mexico.
New York
The largest private landowner in New York is Molpus Woodland Group, which owns 112,000 acres.
North Carolina
The Weyerhaeuser Company owns the most land in North Carolina, with 570,000 acres owned within the state.
Ohio
Escanaba Timber, LLC. is the largest private landowner in Ohio with about 150,000 acres of land.
Oklahoma
The Drummond family is the largest landowner in Oklahoma and the 23rd-largest landowner in the United States. The Drummonds own 433,000 acres. However, it should be noted that they were excluded from the 2021 Land Report, which could indicate a change in ownership.
Oregon
The largest private landowner in Oregon is the Reed family, owners of the Green Diamond Resource Company, which owns 600,000 acres in Oregon.
Pennsylvania
The largest private landowners in Pennsylvania are the Collins Family, who inherited 118,000 acres of land from Truman Collins, the largest landholder in the state before his passing in 1914.
South Carolina
Plum Creek, which has merged with Weyerhaeuser Company, is the largest private landowner in South Carolina, with 352,400 acres, or about 1.7% of the state.
South Dakota
Ted Turner owns the most land in South Dakota, with a Bad River Ranch and Standing Butte Ranch spanning over 186,000 acres.
Tennessee
Brad Kelley and the Wilks brothers are believed to be the largest private landowners in Tennessee. However, the information is undisclosed.
Texas
The largest private landowner in Texas is King Ranch, Inc., with 825,000 acres.
Utah
The federal government owns over 33 million acres of the state making it the second most federally owned state in the nation.
Vermont
The largest private landowner in Vermont is Plum Creed Timber Company, which recently merged with the Weyerhaeuser Company. They own almost 100,000 acres across the state.
Virginia
Eldon Farms is the largest private landowner in Virginia, with 7,100 acres.
Washington
Weyerhaeuser Company, a timberland company, which has merged with Plum Creek Lumber, is the largest private landowner in Washington. Weyerhaeuser owns 12.4 million acres of land, with 900,000 in Washington.
West Virginia
The largest landowner in West Virginia is the North Carolina-based Heartwood Forest Land Fund, which owns just over 500,000 acres. Heartwood Forest Land Fund is one of several Timberland Investment Management Organizations (TIMOs) among the top ten landowners in West Virginia.
Wisconsin
The largest private landowner in Wisconsin is Plum Creek Timber Co., which recently merged with Weyerhaeuser Company, owning more than 500,000 acres.
Wyoming
Stan Kroenke’s landholdings in the state of Wyoming include Q Creek Ranch and W.T Waggoner Ranch to a sum of 550,000 acres. Kroenke is the fifth-largest landowner in the United States, with a total of 1.6 million acres.
