Lottery Winner Lists Large SD Ranch

Bismarck Trail Ranch, South Dakota
Bismarck Trail Ranch, South Dakota
(Hall & Hall)

When Neal Wanless won a $232 million Powerball jackpot in 2009, he did what most young cowboys would do – he started building a ranch. Now, Wanless has listed the near-50,000 acre Bismarck Trail Ranch for sale with Hall & Hall for $41.15 million. The listing includes a set of first-class improvements consisting of four homes, multiple sets of working facilities, and numerous buildings. According to the listing agents, Wanless plans to spend more time at his wife’s family cattle ranch in Canada.

Just 23 years old when he won the Powerball, Wanless was living on his family’s 320-acre ranch. He took the prize in an $88.5 million lump sum after taxes and an Associated Press story reported he wanted to continue doing what he had been doing on the family ranch in south-central South Dakota. At the time, Wanless’ family had bought and sold scrap metal to supplement their income. The jackpot was one of the largest undivided prizes in U.S. lottery history at the time. Wanless bought $15 worth of tickets to the 30-state drawing at a convenience store in Winner during a trip to buy livestock feed.

Bismarck-trail-ranch

Wanless named his Bismarck Ranch after the trail that brought people from Bismarck, ND, to Deadwood during the era of the Black Hills gold rush. The ranch includes about 42,000 deeded acres, about 4,000 acres of land leased for grazing from the Bureau of Land Management and about 1,600 acres leased from the state, according to listing agent Robb Nelson, Hall & Hall. It is home to 3,000 yearlings, 1,600 cow-calf pairs and about 1,000 wild horses.

Bismarck-trail-ranch-2

Bismarck Trail Ranch

Over the years, Wanless has built four homes on the property, including two luxury homes for himself and his mother as well as two smaller residences for ranch hands and guests. The main house, built in Western style, is about 6,500 square feet and has five bedrooms, a large open-plan kitchen and living room with an elaborate stone fireplace, a game room with a billiards table and bar, a poker room and a screening room.

Located 51 miles north of Rapid City, the Bismarck Trail Ranch ranges from Belle Fourche River bottom and irrigated pivots to grassy-covered hillsides.

Nelson said the property is well-watered with an extensive pipeline system, numerous stock tanks, dams, and water wells. There are 875± acres of irrigated ground under eight pivots. The ranch is currently leased for most grazing and the production agriculture.

Related stories:

South Dakota Rancher Uses Lottery Winnings To Buy Ranch Land

 

 

Latest News

Where Did All the Corn Acres and Principal Crop Acres Go? The Two Biggest Questions from USDA's Big Prospective Plantings Report
Where Did All the Corn Acres and Principal Crop Acres Go? The Two Biggest Questions from USDA's Big Prospective Plantings Report

USDA says farmers intend to plant 90 million acres of corn this year, which is lower than the trade expected prior to USDA's big Prospective Plantings report.

Vestaron and Simplot Announce Distribution Agreement
Vestaron and Simplot Announce Distribution Agreement

The distribution agreement focuses on Vestaron’s Spear Lep insecticide, which is a peptide-based control method meant to provide growers with a more environmentally friendly alternative to traditional chemicals.

The Scoop Podcast: How To Gear Up For Carbon And Sustainability Programs
The Scoop Podcast: How To Gear Up For Carbon And Sustainability Programs

Tim Hushon, sustainability and technology director at The Mill, details how sustainability factors into their ag retail business and how to partner with farmers on the technology adoption required.

Two Crop Protection Partners Divest Postharvest Solutions Company
Two Crop Protection Partners Divest Postharvest Solutions Company

Sumitomo Chemical and Valent BioSciences have announced Pace International will become part of AgroFresh Solutions.

The Untold Farmer Stories Of Ukraine: Q&A With Howard Buffett
The Untold Farmer Stories Of Ukraine: Q&A With Howard Buffett

Farmer and philanthropist Howard Buffett held a fireside chat during the 2024 Top Producer Summit to share his experiences visiting the front line of Ukraine over the past two years.

Get the Facts Straight on Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza
Get the Facts Straight on Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza

Now that the mystery illness impacting some dairy herds has been revealed as the same strain of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza that has been impacting the U.S. poultry flock, pork producers are asking questions.