Owen County, Indiana: deer harvest and public hunting land
Owen County covers 388 square miles around Spencer. Hunters took 2,277 deer here in the 2025 season, 1,120 of them antlered, by the DNR's deer report. That is up 18% from 2024, and the most in the 5 years shown. 5.5% of Owen County is public land open to the public, the largest share properties open to public hunting (DNR map) (10,124 acres), by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and the DNR's public hunting property boundaries.
Data updated October 2026. Harvest: the DNR's deer reports, 2021 to 2025. Land: PAD-US 4.1 and the DNR's public hunting property layer.
Properties open to public hunting (DNR map)State parksOther DNR landCounty, city and regional landLand trusts and other open landOwen CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 248,234 acres (388 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Deer taken, 2025 | 2,277 (1,120 antlered, 1,157 antlerless) |
| Public land | 5.5% (13,572 acres) |
| Public hunting properties | 2 (10,124 acres inside Owen County) |
| Towns in and near it | Spencer, Gosport, Patricksburg, Stinesville, Clay City and Ellettsville |
How many deer are harvested in Owen County?
Hunters took 2,277 deer in Owen County in 2025: 1,120 antlered and 1,157 antlerless (51% antlerless).
| Season | Deer taken | Antlered | Antlerless |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2,277 | 1,120 | 1,157 |
| 2024 | 1,922 | 904 | 1,018 |
| 2023 | 1,610 | 804 | 806 |
| 2022 | 1,668 | 843 | 825 |
| 2021 | 1,515 | 813 | 702 |
Source: Indiana DNR White-tailed Deer Reports (2021 to 2025 seasons, Table 3-4), Owen County.
How much public land is in Owen County?
13,572 of Owen County's 248,234 acres are public land open to the public (5.5%). The biggest share is properties open to public hunting (DNR map): 10,124 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Owen County |
|---|---|---|
| Properties open to public hunting (DNR map) | 10,124 | 4.1% |
| State parks | 2,094 | 0.8% |
| Land trusts and other open land | 1,279 | 0.5% |
| Other DNR land | 75 | under 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 13,572 | 5.5% |
Measured by FilledTag inside the county line from USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public) and the DNR's public hunting property boundaries. Hunting rules differ by manager: properties on the DNR's public hunting map are open under the DNR's rules for each; national forest is open; refuges follow U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service rules; Corps of Engineers lake land is open in many places under each project's own rules; state parks hold only special hunts; city and county land sets its own rules.
Properties open to public hunting in Owen County
Properties open to public hunting in Owen County, largest first, with the acres of each inside it:
- Owen-Putnam State Forest: 6,168 acres
- Cagles Mill Lake: 3,956 acres
How do you get to Owen County?
Highways through it: US 231 (about 28 miles inside). Towns inside: Spencer, Gosport, Patricksburg and Coal City. Nearby: Stinesville (2 miles), Clay City (3 miles), Ellettsville (3 miles) and Cloverdale (3 miles).
Which counties border Owen County?
Owen County touches 5 other counties. Their latest DNR harvest and public land, for comparison:
| County | Deer harvested | Year | Public land |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clay County | 1,349 | 2025 | 1.2% |
| Greene County | 2,158 | 2025 | 5.6% |
| Monroe County | 1,652 | 2025 | 22.5% |
| Morgan County | 1,701 | 2025 | 3.6% |
| Putnam County | 2,721 | 2025 | 2.7% |
Questions hunters ask
How many deer were harvested in Owen County in 2025?
2,277: 1,120 antlered and 1,157 antlerless (DNR). In 2024: 1,922.
Is there public hunting land in Owen County?
13,572 acres, 5.5% of the county, are public land open to the public by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and the DNR's public hunting property boundaries, the largest share properties open to public hunting (DNR map) (10,124 acres). The DNR's map shows 2 properties open to public hunting here.
What is the deer bag limit in Owen County?
Indiana's statewide limit is 1 antlered and 6 antlerless deer; each county has its own antlerless limit within that, on the DNR's county antlerless bag limit list.
Get a Indiana hunt plan when they open
Hunt plans for Indiana are coming. Join the list and you'll hear first. The first 50 hunters in each new state get their plan free.
Until then, the free FilledTag app for iPhone has a map that works in every state, Indiana included.
Where these numbers come from
- Deer harvest: Indiana DNR White-tailed Deer Reports (2021 to 2025 seasons, Table 3-4).
- Public land: USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public) and the DNR's public hunting property boundaries. DNR properties open to hunting: Indiana DNR properties with public hunting (managed lands layer).
- Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 cartographic county boundaries. Highways and towns: U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line 2024 primary and secondary roads; U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer, places.
FilledTag is not part of the Indiana Department of Natural Resources. Numbers are copied from the DNR and the federal sources above, or measured from their maps; nothing on this page is estimated by FilledTag.
Indiana hunting Clay County Greene County Monroe County Morgan County Putnam County