Who owns the most land in America? It’s no longer Ted Turner

Top 100 land owners in America

Ted Turner has spent a great deal of time as the biggest land baron in the U.S. but decades ago when he took his business partner John Malone (now the chairman of Liberty Media) on a helicopter tour of his land, he inspired a love of land ownership in Malone that led to major land purchases in Colorado and New Mexico over the years. This year, Malone took the top spot with two major purchases – the famous Bell Ranch in New Mexico, nearly 300,000 acres, and a one million acre buy of timberland in Maine and New Hampshire.

The forest purchase in the northeast came with controversy as environmentalists protested, but Malone is not discouraged, he plans on diversifying even more by buying crop and ranch land to even out costs. He told the Land Report that his lust for owning land is due to his Irish genes. “A certain land hunger comes from being denied property ownership for so many generations.”

Is Turner upset? Heck no, they’re good friends, plus Malone’s 2.2 million acres owned is only 200,000 more acres than Turner.

The full top 100 list:

1. John Malone
2. Ted Turner
3. Archie Aldis Emmerson
4. Brad Kelley
5. Irving Family
6. Singleton Family
7. King Ranch Heirs
8. Pingree Heirs
9. Reed Family
10. Stan Kroenke
11. Ford Family
12. Lykes Bros. Heirs
13. Briscoe Family
14. W.T. Waggoner Estate
15. Holland Ware
16. D.M. O’Connor Heirs
17. Drummond Family
18. Phillip Anschutz
19. J.R. Simplot Heirs
20. Robert Earl Holding
21. Anne Marion
22. East Family Foundation
23. Hughes Family
24. Collins Family
25. Patrick Broe
26. Nunley Family
27. Fasken Family
28. Jeff Bezos
29. Collier Family
30. H.I. Kokernot Heirs
31. Babbitt Ranches
32. Lyda Family
33. Jones Heirs
34. True Family
35. Reynolds Family
36. Mike Smith
37. Paul Fireman
38. D.K. Boyd
39. The Koch Family
40. David Murdock
41. McCoy & Remme Families
42. Scott Family
43. Roxana Hayne & Joan Kelleher
44. Cassidy Heirs
45. Louis Moore Bacon
46. Killam Family
47. Irwin Heirs
48. Langdale Family
49. Eugene Gabrych
50. Bogle Family
51. Hunt Family
52. Tim Blixseth
53. Bidegain Family
54. Williams Family
55. Robert A. Funk
56. Russell Gordy
57. Broadbent Family
58. Sugg Family
59. Benjamin W. Griffith III
60. Cogdell Family
61. Leo Drey Foundation
62. Fanjul Family
63. Hearst Family
64. Ellison Family
65. Bass Family
66. Emily Garvey Bonavia
67. Boswell Family
68. Eddy Family
69. William Henry Green Heirs
70. Wells Family
71. Gerald J. Ford
72. Mike Mechenbier
73. Harrison Family
74. Thomas Lane Family
75. Issac Ellwood Heirs
76. JA Ranch Heirs
77. Monahan Family
78. Les Davis Heirs
79. Booth Family
80. Brite Ranch Heirs
81. Reese Family
82. Moursund Family
83. Scharbauer Family
84. Clayton and Modesta Williams Jr.
85. Stan Harper
86. Frank Leonard Vandersloot
87. Richard and Victoria Evans
88. Linnebur Family
89. Moore Family
90. Robinson Family
91. Beggs Family
92. Milliken Family
93. Powell Heirs
94. Walter Umphrey
95. Yates Family
96. Butler Heirs
97. Eshleman-Vogt Family
98. J. Luther King Jr. & Frank King
99. Hampton Family
100. Aubrey McClendon