The Largest Landowner in South Dakota Owns a Ridiculous 2.6 Million Acres

As the 16^th largest state in the , comprises 77,115.68 square miles of sprawling landscape from the Central Lowlands to the Black Hills. South Dakota joined the Union on November 2, 1889, as the 40th state. However, homesteaders were pouring in well before that! Between 1860 and 1920, the Homestead Act offered homesteaders a free 160-acre plot of land. You can’t get that kind of deal in South Dakota today, but there are a few entities that own large portions of the state. Find out how many acres the largest landowner in South Dakota owns.

Who is the Largest Landowner in South Dakota?

Considering the amount of monuments, national forests, and wildlife refuges, it is no surprise that the United States federal government is the largest landowner in South Dakota. Of the available 48.9 million acres in the state, the federal government possesses 2.6 million acres in South Dakota. That’s about 5.4 percent of the land available in the state.

Overall, the total land area of the United States is 2.27 billion acres, of which the federal government owns about 640 million acres, making it the owner of 28 percent of the total land in the country. And, as far as federal land ownership goes, South Dakota ranks as the 18^th in the nation. It makes sense that the United States federal government is the largest landowner in South Dakota.

What Does the Federal Government Own in South Dakota?

As mentioned earlier, much of the land reserved for monuments and national forests falls under the ownership of the federal government. Let’s examine a few of the largest areas under the government’s jurisdiction.

Black Hills National Forest

The United States President, Grover Cleveland, created the Black Hills Forest Reserve on February 22, 1897. But it wasn’t until the inception of the in 1905 that the Black Hills were designated as a National Forest in 1907.

Located in western South Dakota and northeastern Wyoming, the Black Hills National Forest encompasses 1.2 million acres of hilly forests and mountains. About 110 miles long and 70 miles wide, this National Forest features caves, mines, waterfalls, and prairies to explore.

The National Forest’s name comes from the Lakota words “Paha Sapa,” which means “hills that are black.” From a distance, the pine forests covering the hills give them a dark appearance.

In 2021, about 3.6 million visitors came to the Black Hills National Forest, creating $231.6 million in revenue. It’s a popular destination for campers, hikers, rock climbers, and more.

Buffalo Gap National Grassland

At 595,715 acres, this is the second-largest National Grassland in the United States. Located in the southwestern part of South Dakota, Buffalo Gap makes up 23 percent of the total land ownership of the largest landowner in South Dakota.

The Buffalo Gap National Grassland was established in 1960, and in 2010, South Dakota Senator Tim Johnson introduced a bill that designated 48,000 acres of it as protected wilderness.

Grand River National Grassland

A National Grassland that is located in northwestern South Dakota, the Grand River National Grassland covers 154,783 acres of land. It makes up about 6 percent of the federal government’s total landownership in South Dakota.

It was named after the Grand River, which is a tributary of the Missouri River that runs through the National Grassland. While immigrants settled in this area around the early 1900s under the Homestead Act, the severe drought in the 1930s devastated the area. That, combined with the Great Depression, brought many financial hardships to the homesteaders. So, under the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1933, the federal government bought the land and transferred it to the U.S. Forest Service for care. In 1960, the Forest Service officially named it the Grand River National Grassland.

Custer National Forest

While this National Forest boasts of 1,188,130 acres, most of it is located in Montana. Only about 73,536 acres of the Custer National Forest reside in South Dakota. That makes up barely 3 percent of the federal government’s total land ownership in the state. First established in 1907 as Otter National Forest, the name was changed to Custer a year later.

One claim to fame that Custer National Forest has is that the merlin, a rare type of small , is found in greater concentrations in this forest than anywhere else in the country. Custer National Forest is also home to , , , and more.

What Other Federal Agencies Oversee Land in South Dakota?

Besides the U.S. Forest Service, these other top agencies manage the 2.6 million acres owned by the federal government in South Dakota. They are:

• U.S. National Park Service – 141,312 acres
• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – 205,128 acres
• U.S. Bureau of Land Management – 274,437 acres
• U.S. Department of Defense – 7,929 acres

Other Large Landowners in South Dakota

The may surprise you. Besides the federal government being number one, the second largest is foreign investors such as Canada, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands. The third largest landowner is Ted Turner, who happens to be in the top five in many other states. And finally, land trusts make up the fourth largest landowners in South Dakota.