The hit Stan neo-western series, Yellowstone, has captivated viewers with its expansive storyline and setting. The show revolves around the Dutton family, led by patriarch John Dutton, and their battles to protect their ranch in Montana. With the highly anticipated Season 5B now streaming, fans are once again immersed in the drama of the Dutton Ranch. However, when compared to some of Australia’s largest cattle farms, the Dutton Ranch falls short in terms of size.
In the show, it is revealed that the Dutton Ranch is approximately 776,900 acres, which is significant by many standards. But when contrasted with Anna Creek Station in South Australia, the largest working cattle station on earth at 5,851,000 acres, the Dutton Ranch seems small in comparison. Established in 1863 for sheep grazing and later converted to cattle, Anna Creek Station boasts a rich history and vast expanse of land. It even surpasses other significant Australian cattle stations like Clifton Hills and Quinyambie in size.
While the Dutton Ranch in Yellowstone is depicted as a massive property comparable to the size of Rhode Island, the real-life Chief Joseph Ranch in Darby, Montana, where the show is filmed, is actually much smaller at 2,500 acres. In Australia, the Anna Creek Station is not only the largest cattle farm but also features historical sites such as the Peake Ruins that are listed on the South Australian Heritage Register. The workforce at Anna Creek has evolved over the years from traditional stockmen on horseback to utilizing light aircraft for spotting and motorbikes for rounding up livestock.
Despite the Dutton Ranch’s impressive size in the show, it does not even make the top ten list of the largest cattle stations in Australia when compared to properties like Anna Creek Station and Clifton Hills. In the US, the largest cattle ranch is King Ranch in Texas, which is significantly smaller at 825,000 acres. The grandeur of Australian cattle stations like Anna Creek highlights the vastness of the land and the scale of operations required to manage such expansive properties. Viewers of Yellowstone are transported to the majestic setting of the Dutton Ranch, but in reality, there are even larger and more awe-inspiring cattle farms around the world.
As viewers continue to follow the twists and turns of the Dutton family in Yellowstone, the comparison to Australia’s massive cattle stations offers a fascinating look at the scale of agricultural operations in different parts of the world. While the show portrays the Dutton Ranch as a formidable property in Montana, the reality of Anna Creek Station and other Australian farms underscores the sheer size and complexity of managing such vast tracts of land. As Season 5B unfolds, viewers will once again be drawn into the drama and tension of the Dutton Ranch, even as they are reminded of the real-world counterparts that dwarf its fictional portrayal.
