Crawford County, Missouri: deer harvest and public hunting land
Crawford County covers 744 square miles around Cuba. Hunters checked 3,667 deer here in the 2025 season, 1,805 of them antlered bucks, by MDC's harvest summary. That is up 19% from 2024. 13.5% of Crawford County is public land open to the public, the largest share national forest (50,098 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 areasNational forestState parks and historic sitesOther state landCounty, city and regional landLand trusts and other open landCrawford CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 476,044 acres (744 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Deer checked, 2025 | 3,667 (1,805 antlered bucks, 296 button bucks, 1,566 does) |
| Firearms and archery, 2025 | 3,031 by firearms, 636 by archery |
| Public land | 13.5% (64,431 acres) |
| MDC lands | 11 (11,414 acres inside Crawford County) |
| MRAP land | None mapped this year |
| Towns in and near it | Cuba, Steelville, Bourbon, Sullivan, Viburnum and Oak Grove Village |
How many deer are harvested in Crawford County?
Hunters checked 3,667 deer in Crawford County in 2025: 1,805 antlered bucks, 296 button bucks and 1,566 does. By method: 3,031 by firearms (2,098 of them in the November portion) and 636 by archery; the rest came on managed hunts.
| Season | Deer checked | Antlered bucks | Button bucks | Does | Firearms | November portion | Archery |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 3,667 | 1,805 | 296 | 1,566 | 3,031 | 2,098 | 636 |
| 2024 | 3,082 | 1,492 | 333 | 1,257 | 2,518 | 1,883 | 564 |
| 2023 | 4,406 | 1,949 | 457 | 2,000 | 3,785 | 2,716 | 620 |
| 2022 | 3,501 | 1,633 | 379 | 1,489 | 2,900 | 2,491 | 599 |
| 2021 | 4,011 | 1,887 | 444 | 1,680 | 3,279 | 730 |
Source: MDC deer harvest summaries (2021 to 2025 seasons), Crawford 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 Crawford County?
64,431 of Crawford County's 476,044 acres are public land open to the public (13.5%). The biggest share is national forest: 50,098 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Crawford County |
|---|---|---|
| National forest | 50,098 | 10.5% |
| MDC conservation areas | 12,190 | 2.6% |
| State parks and historic sites | 1,890 | 0.4% |
| County, city and regional land | 178 | under 0.1% |
| Land trusts and other open land | 75 | under 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 64,431 | 13.5% |
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 Crawford County
MDC lands in Crawford County, largest first, with the acres of each inside it:
- Huzzah Conservation Area: 6,079 acres
- Woodson K. Woods Memorial Conservation Area: 3,516 acres
- Blue Springs Creek Conservation Area: 882 acres
- John N. and Melba S. Anderson Memorial Conservation Area: 339 acres
- Crooked Creek Conservation Area: 332 acres
- Pearl G. and John J. Sizemore Memorial Conservation Area: 171 acres
- Onyx Cave Conservation Area: 37 acres
- Scotts Ford Access: 32 acres
- Campbell Bridge Access: 9 acres
- Sappington Bridge Access: 9 acres
- Mint Spring Access: 8 acres
Other large public areas here, by PAD-US: Mark Twain National Forest (50,099 acres).
How do you get to Crawford County?
Highways through it: I-44 (about 45 miles inside), MO 19 (about 38 miles inside) and MO 49 (about 15 miles inside). Towns inside: Cuba, Steelville, Bourbon, St. Cloud, Leasburg and West Sullivan. Nearby: Sullivan (on the line), Viburnum (on the line), Oak Grove Village (2 miles) and Miramiguoa Park (3 miles).
Which counties border Crawford County?
Crawford County touches 6 other counties. Their latest MDC harvest and public land, for comparison:
| County | Deer harvested | Year | Public land | MRAP land sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dent County | 2,659 | 2025 | 19.9% | |
| Iron County | 1,903 | 2025 | 31.7% | |
| Phelps County | 2,723 | 2025 | 16% | |
| Franklin County | 6,751 | 2025 | 3.1% | |
| Gasconade County | 4,073 | 2025 | 0.5% | |
| Washington County | 3,425 | 2025 | 20% |
Questions hunters ask
How many deer were harvested in Crawford County in 2025?
Hunters checked 3,667 deer: 1,805 antlered bucks, 296 button bucks and 1,566 does (MDC). In 2024: 3,082.
Is there public hunting land in Crawford County?
Yes. 64,431 acres, 13.5% of the county, are public land open to the public by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and MDC conservation area boundaries, the largest share national forest (50,098 acres). MDC's map shows 11 conservation areas here.
Does Crawford County have MRAP land?
Not on MDC's MRAP layer of tracts open to hunting.
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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 Dent County Iron County Phelps County Franklin County Gasconade County Washington County