Lewis County, Missouri: deer harvest and public hunting land
Lewis County covers 511 square miles around Canton. Hunters checked 2,407 deer here in the 2025 season, 1,066 of them antlered bucks, by MDC's harvest summary. That is down 4% from 2024. 3.1% of Lewis County is public land open to the public, the largest share MDC conservation areas (8,632 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 areasFederal land, mostly Corps of Engineers lakesNational wildlife refugesState parks and historic sitesLand trusts and other open landLewis CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 326,934 acres (511 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Deer checked, 2025 | 2,407 (1,066 antlered bucks, 198 button bucks, 1,143 does) |
| Firearms and archery, 2025 | 1,916 by firearms, 491 by archery |
| Public land | 3.1% (10,189 acres) |
| MDC lands | 6 (8,556 acres inside Lewis County) |
| MRAP land | None mapped this year |
| Towns in and near it | Canton, La Grange, La Belle, Newark, Knox City and Bethel |
How many deer are harvested in Lewis County?
Hunters checked 2,407 deer in Lewis County in 2025: 1,066 antlered bucks, 198 button bucks and 1,143 does. By method: 1,916 by firearms (1,218 of them in the November portion) and 491 by archery; the rest came on managed hunts.
| Season | Deer checked | Antlered bucks | Button bucks | Does | Firearms | November portion | Archery |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2,407 | 1,066 | 198 | 1,143 | 1,916 | 1,218 | 491 |
| 2024 | 2,502 | 1,134 | 236 | 1,132 | 2,043 | 1,398 | 459 |
| 2023 | 2,359 | 1,006 | 250 | 1,103 | 1,968 | 1,428 | 390 |
| 2022 | 2,449 | 1,125 | 243 | 1,081 | 2,047 | 1,650 | 399 |
| 2021 | 2,063 | 1,011 | 178 | 874 | 1,707 | 353 |
Source: MDC deer harvest summaries (2021 to 2025 seasons), Lewis 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 Lewis County?
10,189 of Lewis County's 326,934 acres are public land open to the public (3.1%). The biggest share is MDC conservation areas: 8,632 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Lewis County |
|---|---|---|
| MDC conservation areas | 8,632 | 2.6% |
| State parks and historic sites | 1,040 | 0.3% |
| Federal land, mostly Corps of Engineers lakes | 431 | 0.1% |
| National wildlife refuges | 47 | under 0.1% |
| Land trusts and other open land | 39 | under 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 10,189 | 3.1% |
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 Lewis County
MDC lands in Lewis County, largest first, with the acres of each inside it:
- Deer Ridge Conservation Area: 7,293 acres
- Upper Mississippi Conservation Area: 467 acres
- LaBelle Lake Conservation Area: 350 acres
- Tolona Access: 173 acres
- Wyaconda Crossing Conservation Area: 154 acres
- Sunnyside School Access: 119 acres
Other large public areas here, by PAD-US: Ms Rv Pools 11-22 Recreation Area (811 acres).
How do you get to Lewis County?
Highways through it: US 61 (about 43 miles inside), MO 6 (about 22 miles inside), MO 16 (about 17 miles inside), MO 156 (about 13 miles inside) and MO 81 (about 11 miles inside). Towns inside: Canton, La Grange, La Belle, Ewing, Lewistown and Monticello. Nearby: Newark (on the line), Knox City (3 miles), Bethel (6 miles) and Alexandria (8 miles).
Which counties border Lewis County?
Lewis County touches 4 other counties. Their latest MDC harvest and public land, for comparison:
| County | Deer harvested | Year | Public land | MRAP land sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Knox County | 2,646 | 2025 | 0.4% | |
| Clark County | 2,750 | 2025 | 2.8% | |
| Marion County | 2,339 | 2025 | 1.6% | |
| Shelby County | 2,559 | 2025 | 0.8% |
Questions hunters ask
How many deer were harvested in Lewis County in 2025?
Hunters checked 2,407 deer: 1,066 antlered bucks, 198 button bucks and 1,143 does (MDC). In 2024: 2,502.
Is there public hunting land in Lewis County?
Yes. 10,189 acres, 3.1% 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 (8,632 acres). MDC's map shows 6 conservation areas here.
Does Lewis 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.
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