Barton County, Missouri: deer harvest and public hunting land
Barton County covers 597 square miles around Lamar. Hunters checked 1,844 deer here in the 2025 season, 993 of them antlered bucks, by MDC's harvest summary. That is about the same as 2024, and the fewest in the 5 years shown. 2.9% of Barton County is public land open to the public, the largest share MDC conservation areas (8,068 acres), by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and MDC conservation area boundaries.
Data updated October 2026. Harvest: MDC's deer harvest summaries, 2021 to 2025. Land: PAD-US 4.1 and MDC's conservation area and MRAP layers.
MDC conservation areasState parks and historic sitesCounty, city and regional landMRAP landBarton CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 381,885 acres (597 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Deer checked, 2025 | 1,844 (993 antlered bucks, 117 button bucks, 734 does) |
| Firearms and archery, 2025 | 1,484 by firearms, 360 by archery |
| Public land | 2.9% (11,201 acres) |
| MDC lands | 16 (7,411 acres inside Barton County) |
| MRAP land | 1 site, 486 acres |
| Towns in and near it | Lamar, Mindenmines, Golden City, Sheldon, Jasper and Bronaugh |
How many deer are harvested in Barton County?
Hunters checked 1,844 deer in Barton County in 2025: 993 antlered bucks, 117 button bucks and 734 does. By method: 1,484 by firearms (971 of them in the November portion) and 360 by archery; the rest came on managed hunts.
| Season | Deer checked | Antlered bucks | Button bucks | Does | Firearms | November portion | Archery |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1,844 | 993 | 117 | 734 | 1,484 | 971 | 360 |
| 2024 | 1,850 | 1,003 | 121 | 726 | 1,510 | 1,077 | 340 |
| 2023 | 1,966 | 993 | 152 | 821 | 1,640 | 1,102 | 326 |
| 2022 | 2,093 | 1,057 | 149 | 887 | 1,688 | 1,376 | 402 |
| 2021 | 1,911 | 1,001 | 122 | 788 | 1,523 | 381 |
Source: MDC deer harvest summaries (2021 to 2025 seasons), Barton County, from the county tables of each season (all methods, firearms, archery and the November portion). The 2021 summary has no separate November table.
How much public land is in Barton County?
11,201 of Barton County's 381,885 acres are public land open to the public (2.9%). The biggest share is MDC conservation areas: 8,068 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Barton County |
|---|---|---|
| MDC conservation areas | 8,068 | 2.1% |
| State parks and historic sites | 3,046 | 0.8% |
| County, city and regional land | 85 | under 0.1% |
| Land trusts and other open land | 2 | under 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 11,201 | 2.9% |
Measured by FilledTag inside the county line from USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public) and MDC conservation area boundaries. Hunting rules differ by manager: MDC conservation areas allow the hunting each area's page lists; national forest is open; Corps of Engineers lake land is open to hunting in many places under each project's own rules; refuges follow U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service rules; the Ozark National Scenic Riverways allows hunting under state rules while most other national park land is closed; state parks and city and county land are closed to most hunting.
MDC lands in Barton County
MDC lands in Barton County, largest first, with the acres of each inside it:
- Shawnee Trail Conservation Area: 3,685 acres
- Buffalo Wallow Prairie Conservation Area: 1,144 acres
- Clear Creek Conservation Area: 407 acres
- Comstock Prairie Conservation Area: 313 acres
- Mo-No-I Prairie Conservation Area: 302 acres
- Bethel Prairie Conservation Area: 259 acres
- Pa Sole Prairie Conservation Area: 238 acres
- Edward B. and Marie O. Risch Conservation Area: 173 acres
- Treaty Line Prairie Conservation Area: 167 acres
- Redwing Prairie Conservation Area: 166 acres
- Dorris Creek Prairie Conservation Area: 158 acres
- Drywood Conservation Area: 98 acres
- Mon-Shon Prairie Conservation Area: 80 acres
- The Lester R. Davis Memorial Forest: 79 acres
- Pawhuska Prairie: 74 acres
- Bushwhacker Lake Conservation Area: 68 acres
MRAP land in Barton County
MDC's MRAP layer shows 1 tract in Barton County open to some hunting, 486 acres of private land enrolled for public access. Each tract's map says what it allows. MDC: MRAP.
How do you get to Barton County?
Highways through it: US 71 (about 41 miles inside), I-49 (about 41 miles inside), MO 126 (about 29 miles inside), MO 43 (about 20 miles inside) and US 160 (about 5 miles inside). Towns inside: Lamar, Mindenmines, Golden City, Liberal, Lamar Heights and Milford. Nearby: Sheldon (on the line), Jasper (on the line), Bronaugh (3 miles) and Jerico Springs (3 miles).
Which counties border Barton County?
Barton County touches 4 other counties. Their latest MDC harvest and public land, for comparison:
| County | Deer harvested | Year | Public land | MRAP land sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dade County | 1,702 | 2025 | 9.4% | |
| Cedar County | 2,334 | 2025 | 8.9% | |
| Jasper County | 2,607 | 2025 | 0.3% | |
| Vernon County | 3,131 | 2025 | 5% | 2 |
Questions hunters ask
How many deer were harvested in Barton County in 2025?
Hunters checked 1,844 deer: 993 antlered bucks, 117 button bucks and 734 does (MDC). In 2024: 1,850.
Is there public hunting land in Barton County?
Yes. 11,201 acres, 2.9% of the county, are public land open to the public by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and MDC conservation area boundaries, the largest share MDC conservation areas (8,068 acres). MDC's map shows 16 conservation areas here.
Does Barton County have MRAP land?
Yes. 1 tract open to some hunting, 486 acres, on MDC's MRAP layer.
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Where these numbers come from
- Deer harvest: MDC deer harvest summaries (2021 to 2025 seasons).
- Public land: USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public) and MDC conservation area boundaries. conservation areas: MDC conservation area boundaries. MRAP land: MDC Missouri Recreational Access Program (MRAP) lands.
- 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 Missouri Department of Conservation. Numbers are copied from MDC and the federal sources above, or measured from their maps; nothing on this page is estimated by FilledTag.
Missouri hunting Dade County Cedar County Jasper County Vernon County