THE TOP 25 LAND BARONS: THEY OWN 1% OF THE UNITED STATES

Source: Business Insider
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By Hannah Kim and Gus Lubin

America's #1 land baron

Remember the great railroad and cattle barons of the 19th century? Turns out they still own a huge part of the country. The 25 biggest landowners in America own 20 million acres --  nearly 1% of the country -- according to new data from The Land Report.
Many of them inherited land bought cheap at the turn of the century. Others are self-made millionaires, including John Malone, who just purchased the 290,000 acre Bell Ranch back in August.
Ted Turner tops the list, with more than 2 million acres spread across 12 states.

Click here to see the top landowners >

 

#25 Fasken Family owns 300,000 acres

A Nevada well drilled by Fasken Oil & Ranch Ltd

Fasken Oil & Ranch Ltd

Land: Ranches and oilfields throughout Texas.
Background:  Toronto attorney David Fasken started buying land in Texas in 1913. After oil was discovered on their ranch in the 1940s, the Faskens spread across the Southwest.
Data published with permission from The Land Report
 Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAeqAW2s

#24 Pat Broe owns 310,000 acres

Pat Broe and his Rockies acres

Great Western Industrial Park

Land: Holdings in many states. Broe's Hubble & Green Ranches in New Mexico cover 290,000 acres. His Colorado’s Great Western Industrial Park became a major source of the state’s green job growth in 2008.
Background: Broe's investment and asset management company controls over 100 companies in real estate, energy and transportation.
Data published with permission from The Land Report.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAf12PZX

#23 Lyda Family owns 320,035 acres

Gerald Lyda and aerial view of his vast Escalera Ranch

Escalera Ranch

Land: Ranches throughout Texas.
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.
Data published with permission from The Land Report
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAfFZcCS

#22 Anne Marion owns 345,000 acres

Anne Marion and her sprawling 6666 Ranch

Land: Oilfields and ranchlands throughout Texas.  Her two main ranches, the 6666 Ranch near Guthrie and the Dixon Creek Ranch near Panhandle, total 275,000 acres.
Background: Anne Marion is the fourth generation heir to Samuel Burnett, a cattle rancher who amassed more than a third of a million acres in Texas by the early 1900s.
Data published with permission from The Land Report
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAfPNjq4

21. East Family owns 350,000 acres

East Wildlife Foundation

Land: Ranchland in Texas and New Mexico.
Background: Alice Gertrudis Kleberg East, gave up her interest in her grandfather Richard King of King Ranch estate in exchange for the San Antonio and Santa Fe ranches.
Data published with permission from The Land Report.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAfdMvON
  

# 20 Simplot Family owns 355,746 acres

Founding father J.R. Simplot and his vast agricultural complex in Idaho.

J.R. Simplot Company

Land: Idaho, agribusiness. The land and livestock division has 37 farms and 15 ranches with capacity for 30,000 mother cows.
Background:  The J.R. Simplot Company started its fortune in potatoes but diversified over the years to become one of the largest, privately held food companies in the world.
Data published with permission from The Land Report.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAfmcllL

#19 Robert Earl Holding owns 400,000 acres

Sun Valley Ski Resort

Land: Holdings in many states. Ranches in Wyoming and Montana; ski resorts in Utah and Idaho; six other luxury hotels and resorts across the country, including The Grand American Hotel in Salt Lake City.
Background: Robert Earl Holding's success began in the oil industry where he owns three refineries and bought Sinclair Oil in 1976.
Data published with permission from The Land Report.

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAfzgErL

#18 Phillip Anschutz owns 434,493 acres

Sports mogul Anschutz and one of his many drilling rigs

Anschutz Exploration Corp

Land: 250,000-acre Baughman Farms in Kansas; 149,493-acre Overland Trail Cattle Company & Ranch in Wyoming and 35,000 acres in Colorado.
Background: Phillip Anschutz's company has investments in energy exploration, telecommunications and agribusiness. His Anschutz Entertainment Group is also the world’s largest owner and operator of sports and entertainment venues.
Data published with permission from The Land Report.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAg8SqHt

#17 D.M. O’Connor Heirs owns 500,000 acres

Port O'Connor, Texas -- a town named for its largest landholder

University of Texas

Land: Ranchland and oil fields in Texas.
Background: D.M. O'Connor, above, continued to expand the land his father, Thomas O'Connor, was awarded in the Battle of San Jacinto.  Oil was discovered on their cattle ranches and today, the O'Connors now own an estimated half-million acres across Southern and Western Texas.
Data published with permission from The Land Report.
 Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAgJGxDN

#15 W.T. Waggoner Estate owns 526,000 acres

The late W.T. Waggoner and his ranch

Image: Waggoner Ranch

Land: Ranching and farmland throughout Texas.
Background: W.T. Waggoner's began expanding his father's ranching interests and established what is known today as the W.T. Waggoner Estate.
Data published with permission from The Land Report.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAgRGQG1

#14 Briscoe Family owns 560,000 acres

Rebecca Flack/The Nature Conservancy

Land: Ranchlands and oilfields throughout Texas
Background: Former Texas Governor Dolph Briscoe Jr., expanded his holdings when oil and gas were discovered on his ranchland.
Data published with permission from The Land Report.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAgc419v

#13 Huber Family owns 600,000 acres

Huber Engineered Woods

Land: Oil and gas divisions throughout the West and Southwest; timber units across Maine, Oklahoma, and the Southeast.
Background: Joseph M. Huber's success as a sales agent for his family's pigments and manufacturing business back in the late 1800s grew into a diversified corporation that spans many industries from paper and energy to plastics and construction.
Data published with permission from The Land Report.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAgin76M

#12 Lykes Bros. Heirs owns 615,000 acres

Courtesy of Lykes Ranch

Land: Ranchlands and farms in Texas and Florida.
Background: The Lykes family-owned company began as a cattle ranching operation and has since expanded into bioenergy and farming.
Data published with permission from The Land Report
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAgsKLAg

#11 The Ford Family owns 625,000 acres

The late Kenneth Ford and his lumber empire

Courtesy of Roseburg Forest Products

Land: Timberland throughout Oregon and California.
Background: The Ford family’s Roseburg Forest Products had its origins in 1936 when the Roseburg Lumber Company was founded by owner Kenneth Ford.
Data published with permission from The Land Report
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAh1hExN

#11 The Ford Family owns 625,000 acres

The late Kenneth Ford and his lumber empire

Courtesy of Roseburg Forest Products

Land: Timberland throughout Oregon and California.
Background: The Ford family’s Roseburg Forest Products had its origins in 1936 when the Roseburg Lumber Company was founded by owner Kenneth Ford.
Data published with permission from The Land Report.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAh1hExN

#10 Stan Kroenke owns 740,000 acres

Kroenke and his cows

Q Creek Land and Livestock

Land: Cow-calf operations on Cedar Creek and PV Ranch in Montana; Q Creek Land & Livestock Company runs up to 12,000 yearlings on 550,000+ acres in Wyoming.
Background: The sports mogul who got his start in real estate just became the majority owner of the St. Louis Rams.
Data published with permission from The Land Report
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAhMRHm4

#9 Reed Family owns 770,000 acres

Courtesy of Washington State Dept. of Ecology

Land: 770,000 acres of timber across California, Oregon, and Washington.
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.
Data published with permission from The Land Report.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAhUebC5

#8 Pingree Heirs owns 830,000 acres

Courtesy of Seven Islands

Land: 830,000 acres of timberland in Maine.
Background: The Pingree family's fortune in timber began in the mid 1800s and has conserved more than three quarters of a million acres of Maine forestland -- a block larger than the size of Rhode Island.
Data published with permission from The Land Report
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAheJtyg

#7 King Ranch owns 911,215 acres

Courtesy of King Ranch

Land: Operates 825,000 acres of cattle ranches and 60,000 acres of farms in South Texas; thousands of acres in Florida producing orange juice, sugar cane, sod, sweet corn and green beans.
Background: The main cash cow for King Ranch remains ranching and farming but it has also expanded into publishing, retail and eco-tourism.
Data published with permission from The Land Report.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAhm2yFb

#6 Singleton Family owns 1.11 million acres

Courtesy of Singleton Ranches

Land: The Singleton ranches comprise of 29 ranches across California and New Mexico, including the picturesque San Cristobal Ranch outside of Santa Fe.
Background: Henry Singleton amassed his wealth in digital technology before purchasing the San Cristobal Ranch in 1986.
Data published with permission from The Land Report.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAhvZSM8

#5 John Malone owns 1.2 million acres

AP

Land: Purchased 290,000-acre Bell Ranch in Nex Mexico this August to add to his landholdings in Colorado and Wyoming.
Background:  Malone has served in executive positions in telecommunications firms and is currently the chairman of Liberty Media Corp.
Data published with permission from The Land Report.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAi37CNM

#4 Irving Family owns 1.2 million acres

Jim Irving and his Maine acres

Courtesy of J.D. Irving

Land: 1.2 million acres of forests in Maine.
Background: The family business, Irving Woodlands, has roots dating back to 1882 when James D. Irving founded a company that included a sawmill, gristmill, lumber business and farms.
Data published with permission from The Land Report.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAiAyq00

#3 Brad Kelley owns 1.7 million acres

AP

Land: Kelley’s properties span Texas, New Mexico, and Florida and are used to breed rare species of animals.
Background:  According to Forbes, Kelley founded a tobacco company in 1990 and sold it for $1 billion in 2001.
Data published with permission from The Land Report.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAiJHSTz

#2 Red Emmerson owns 1.722 million acres

Red Emmerson in California

Courtesy of Sierra Pacific Industries

Land: Approximately two million acres of forestland in California and Washington.
Background: Red Emmerson is president of Sierra Pacific Industries, a family-run lumber manufacturing business that ranks as California's largest private landowner.
Data published with permission from The Land Report.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAiQkf00

#1 Ted Turner owns over 2 million acres

Image: Turner Enterprises

Land:  Owns 2 million acres in 12 states and Argentina; the 8,800-acre Nonami Plantation known for quail hunting is his most recent and largest acquisition in his home state of Georgia.

Background: Ted Turner founded the Turner Broadcasting System that launched CNN and several other cable successful programs.
Source: 2010 Land Report 100
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america?op=1#ixzz2KAiWNSJr

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Source:

Business Insider

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http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-landowners-america#1-ted-turner-owns-over-2-million-acres-25