Why is only a percentage of Wyoming owned by the government? I thought the government owned all land?

Answer 1

The Bureau of Land Management controls part of Wyoming and several other western states; however, this accounts for a very small percentage of the land in the US. Most land is privately owned. There are only a few states that have BLM controlled land. The only other govt.-owned property in the US is national monuments, forests, parks, etc. National Geographic has a great map of the BLM land. If you can't find it on their website, someone is always selling old NG maps on eBay.

Answer 2

The United States Government owns 49.5% of all land in Wyoming. Most federal land is managed by the Bureau of Land Management, the National Forest Service, or the National Park Service. The federal government tried to sell virtually all federal land in the West in the 19th Century, but land deemed to poor or rugged to farm could not be sold and remained government property. The government leases some of its land for grazing or timber harvesting.

The State of Wyoming owns another 6.2% of all land. Most state land is leased to provide support for Wyoming Schools.

Answer 3

The government owns very little land, actually. Unlike a communist country, where the government own everything, in the USA, the government only owns national parks and federal wildlife preserves. People own the land. It's called 'land reform.' Look it up.