Grand Teton National Park is one of Wyoming’s leading tourist attractions, and now there will be even more of the park for visitors to explore. The National Park Service (NPS) partnered with several organizations to purchase an additional 35 acres of land for the park, the last in a series of land deals that have grown the park’s footprint.
What Happened
Grand Teton National Park sits near Jackson Hole, Wyo., in Teton County. This area is consistently ranked among the wealthiest in the country, with average annual per capita income exceeding $530,000. And thus, the price of land here is also astronomical; so, if the NPS wants to purchase private land to add to the park, it had better come prepared with a large check.
For the past several years, the NPS, along with the city and state governments, has sought to purchase land from one particular source: the Resor family. Since 1929, the family has owned and operated Snake River Ranch, the largest privately owned ranch in the state.
Periodically since 2001, the NPS and partners have purchased six tracts of land from the Resors for a total of 212.4 acres. In the most recent deal, officially celebrated in a public event on July 15, the park purchased 35 acres for $10,995,000.
A key player in these deals is The Conservation Fund, a nonprofit dedicated to protecting at-risk land. The purchased tracts, located close to the park’s southwestern entrance, include important wildlife habitat.
“Together, these lands help safeguard the scenic character, wildlife habitat and recreational opportunities that define the park and the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem,” TCF said in a press release.
Part of the funding for the deal came from the federal Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). Established in 1965, this program uses a small percentage of money from offshore energy revenues for conservation and recreation.
“The landscapes that define Grand Teton National Park exist today because generations of people have made the commitment to protect them,” Grand Teton National Park Superintendent Chip Jenkins said in a press release. “This milestone represents decades of stewardship and collaboration to conserve wildlife habitat, maintain the scenic character visitors cherish, and preserve the integrity of this landscape.”
Why Does It Matter?
TCF estimates that around 3.6 million people visited the park in 2024, generating $983 million in economic impact for the local economy. “Outdoor recreation jobs account for 4.5% of the state’s Gross Domestic Product — the fifth-highest share of any state in the country,” the Wyoming Chamber of Commerce explained.
The larger the park, the more visitors it may attract, and the more employees it and local businesses may need.
And of course, the land is now protected. TCF Wyoming State Director Dan Schlager told local Jackson Hole News that this land, located right next to Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, was at high-risk of development. Many endangered, threatened, and at-risk species call the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem home, including the Canada lynx, yellow-billed cuckoo, greater sage grouse, and western glacier stonefly.
With the park’s size before these deals exceeding 300,000 acres, these few hundred acres of land may seem like a drop in the bucket, but for folks in the world of conservation and public lands, it’s an achievement worth celebrating.
