School-Trust Lands on the Auction Block in Okla.

By Andrew Trotter

The gavel slammed last week on the last of 99 parcels of land being auctioned by the Oklahoma School Land Commission over the past two weeks. Crowds attended auctions at 16 county courthouses to hear the auctioneer's spiel and bid on a total of 14,769 acres, mostly pasture.

The auctions marked the first round of a long-term sell-off that amounts to the largest statewide land offering since the Oklahoma Land Run of 1889. Though it will take an estimated 12 to 16 years, the state plans to dispose of up to 500,000 acres of its school-trust lands, which are administered by the commission.

Earnings from leases and other income from trust lands help support the state's...