National Park Service among those looking at land for sale on Horn Island
Yes, a small part of Horn Island is owned by private individuals, the National Park Service confirmed after 96 acres were listed by a real estate company.
This list price is $25 million.
Many people posted on social media they thought the barrier island, which lies less than 10 miles off the coast of Jackson County, is entirely owned by the National Park Service.
The majority of Horn Island is owned and administered by the National Park Service as part of Gulf Islands National Seashore, the park service said in a statement to the Sun Herald.
Before the National Seashore was established in 1971, there were, and still are, some small parcels owned by multiple owners and associated land ownership groups, the park service said.
How much?
Horn Island is 3,014 acres, including 174 acres of private land held in fee simple title among four different parcels, the park service said.
Private land ownership is 5.8%.
The public lands administered by NPS-GUIS is 2,840 acres, or 94.2% of the total land.
Interest in purchase
Gulf Islands National Park is aware of the private owners and continues to research and identify the ownership of the four privately held parcels, it said.
Janel Doug Rand, a licensed real estate agent in Florida and Mississippi, said many private individuals own land on the island and collectively listed the property for sale.
“The owners have been stewardships of the land for over 65 years and now they are looking for someone to carry that legacy forward,” she said on Facebook.
To get the information on the owners, she said, will require a serious buyer to sign a non-disclosure agreement.
Gulf Islands National Park first must determine if there is a willing seller before it is able to request potential funding support for acquisition through the Land & Water Conservation Fund.
Can anything be built there?
The Park Service didn’t comment on whether development can occur on privately owned land on Horn Island, which is one of 800 designated National Wildlife areas in the country.
“This affords the islands the highest level of federal protection for public lands under the Wilderness Act of 1964,” The National Park Service website says, and gives Horn and nearby Petit Bois islands the same protections as areas like the Great Smokey Mountains.
The owners haven’t indicated whether they hope to sell the land to the National Park Service or other conservation group, or if they are targeting private investment.
Rand said she’s spoken to investors interested in buying a piece of the island. The 96 acres is generally in the center of the 10-mile strip of island, she said, with beachfront access on the north and south sides.
When there was talk in the early 1970s about developing Horn Island, John Anderson, son of Mississippi artist Walter Anderson, wondered if anyone would come to a public hearing to support the wilderness designation for the island his father so loved.
“Imagine the amazement of those present when they discovered that the large auditorium was completely packed with people adamantly demanding that Horn Island remain untouched. Instead of no support, there was actually no opposition,” he said at the time.
Congress approved the wilderness area designation in 1978.
What would it take to build there?
Sand dunes and slash pines, along with some endangered species, are about all that’s on Horn Island. The island was completely covered with water during Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and the beaches were soiled by oil sheets and tar balls during the oil spill in 2010.
Of the six barrier islands off the coast of Mississippi, Ship Island has a fort and Ship Island Excursions runs a concession, ferrying people from Gulfport to the island for the day. On Cat Island, a small subdivision was platted with a canal system and 45 lots on about 10 acres. That never developed, but a few homes are on Cat Island and most of the land is owned by the state for public use.
The homes on Deer Island, just off the Coast of Biloxi, were washed and blown away over the years. A property owner hasn’t been able to sell or develop the land even with the possibility of running water, sewer and power lines buried between the 400-acre island and the mainland. In 2022, eight acres were for sale for $5 million.
Obstacles galore
If by some chance a property owner were allowed to build on the island, they would have would have to invest a lot of time and money:
▪ Environmental studies: These would be required to determine the impact of development on the island.
Also, the owner would need to determine if any ordinance or remnants of chemical weapons remain from when the island was a test range and chemical laboratory during World War II.
▪ Building requirements: Federal, state and local permits would be required to build on the barrier island.
Construction would have to be on piers and building materials would need to withstand the saltwater environment and high winds.
▪ Utilities: The developer would need to secure a source of fresh water, such as an artesian well that supplied water to Isle of Caprice before the island sank below the water in the 1930s. Other options would be a desalination system, rainwater collection or water delivery from the mainland.
A holding tank would be needed for sewage, and would need to be pumped each time before reaching capacity.
A power source such as solar, wind or generator would be required along with satellite internet for communication.
Insurance: It would be a challenge to find a company willing to provide wind and flood insurance on a property on a barrier island.
This story was originally published May 13, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
