The Stories Behind the Biggest Typical Whitetail Deer
NUMBER ONE — Hunter: Milo Hansen
Score: 213-5/8 points
Location: Saskatchewan
Year: 1993
It all started with a school bus driver. On the last day of Saskatchewan’s 1992 deer season, the driver told some locals that a monster whitetail was feeding in Milo Hansen’s alfalfa field. Once word got around, the buck was spotted on farms, in pea fields, and then near a highway just north of Biggar in the southwestern portion of the province.
On opening day of the 1993 season, friends and family gathered at the Hansen house as they always had since Milo and his wife Olive moved to the farm in the early 1970s. There was a lot of talk about the big buck. The opener proved a bust as the snow was already a week old, but on November 22, new snow arrived and the posse devised a plan.
Neighbors spotted the buck and watched him go into the willows. No one saw him come out. One hunter went into the willows while everyone else posted themselves around the escape route. The buck flushed but several shots missed their mark.
Milo watched the buck run, leveled his four-power scope and took two shots from his .308 Winchester, bringing the buck down. One more shot and the deer was dead. Milo hadn’t had a cigarette in three years, but he wanted one that day. Friends measured the buck, and then re-measured the buck. Milo realized he might just have a world’s record. Later, Boone and Crockett Official Measurers confirmed everyone’s suspicions; Milo had killed the world’s finest typical whitetail.
Want to see the score charts too?
It's easy. First you'll need to register on B&C’s website. It's FREE and takes less than a minute to complete. If you already have an account, simply log in to gain access.
NUMBER TWO — Hunter: Sam Aiuppa
Score: 207-7/8 points
Location: Illinois
Year: 1991
In late November 1991, pheasant hunter Sam Aiuppa shot a massive whitetail deer in LaSalle County, Illinois, after switching to a shotgun slug. Being primarily a bird hunter, he simply skull-capped the antlers and kept them in his basement for over 30 years. The trophy remained hidden until an electrician friend noticed the rack, leading antler collector James Martin to buy the set and have it officially measured where it scored an astounding 207-7/8 as a typical whitetail.
NUMBER THREE — Hunter: James Jordan
Score: 206-1/8 points
Location: Wisconsin
Year: 1914
They say if you shoot a world’s record whitetail and drop it off at the taxidermist who moves to Florida and never returns your deer, but then the deer finds its way back to you after nearly 60 years…well, the deer was meant to be with you.
Maybe the original saying is a little different, but check this out. Jim Jordan shot this beautiful buck in early November of 1914. He turned the head over to his taxidermist and thought he would see it on his wall in less than half a century. Jordan checked in on his buck, only to find the taxidermist moved to Minnesota, then to Florida. Jordan thought his buck was gone for good.
Jordan’s family eventually moved to Hinkley, Minnesota, where his taxidermist had moved prior to moving to Florida. Enter Robert Ludwig forty-four years after Jordan shot that buck. At a garage sale in Sandstone, Minnesota, he paid $3 for a giant deer rack. In 1971, he had it scored by Boone and Crockett Club measurers who dubbed it a world’s record at the time. James Jordan happened to be Bob’s uncle, and he recognized the buck immediately when Bob showed it to him. Sadly, James Jordan passed away only two months before the Boone and Crockett Club officially attached Jordan’s name to the buck.
NUMBER FOUR — Hunter: Dustin Huff
Score: 205-6/8 points
Location: Illinois
Year: 2021
In November 2021, country singer-songwriter Dustin Huff harvested a massive whitetail deer on an Indiana farm using a $300 crossbow, unintentionally taking down what proved to be a record-breaking buck. After news of the buck went viral—sparked by a tip to the media from fellow country star Luke Combs—the deer was officially measured at 211-4/8 points by the Boone and Crockett Club, establishing it as the new Indiana state record and the third-largest typical whitetail in history. The sudden notoriety boosted Huff's music career, and he eventually sold the original antlers to collector Keith Snider to help finance stem cell therapy for his father, while retaining replicas to take on tour.
NUMBER FIVE – Hunter: Larry Gibson
Score: 205 points
Location: Missouri
Year: 1971
In 1971, hunter Larry Gibson killed a massive 12-point whitetail buck in Randolph County, Missouri, that netted 205 inches—ranking it as the then-#3 typical buck of all time behind only Milo Hanson's world record and the James Jordan buck. Gibson's achievement largely slipped under the radar of modern hunting lore because he sold the antlers to a local club for $200 and returned to daily life long before the era of modern outdoor media and commercial sponsorships.
NUMBER SIX – Hunter: Frederick Kyress
Score: 204-6/8 points
Location: Pennsylvania
Year: 1962
Killed by Frederick Kyress in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, around 1962, this massive whitetail rack sat forgotten in a barn for 40 years before spending another two decades tucked away in an antique shop and passing through various hands. In 2019, an antler collector submitted the long-lost rack for scoring, where its score was ultimately revised to 204-6/8 points. Today, as the official #1 typical whitetail in Pennsylvania history and #4 all-time, the iconic buck permanently resides in the King of Bucks collection at Johnny Morris' Wonders of Wildlife National Museum & Aquarium in Springfield, Missouri.
NUMBER SEVEN – Hunter: Melvin J. Johnson
Score: 204-4/8 points
Location: Illinois
Year: 1965
The year was 1965, and guys either sported a crew-cut or long hair. Melvin Johnson had the former and a recurve. He also had a couple of treestands hung around an Illinois soybean field where he knew this bruiser liked to cruise. One day, though, he decided to build a rudimentary ground blind. With the wind in his face, he saw this stud at 300 yards, and it was moving toward him.
When the buck was close, it stared right at Johnson. After a moment, the buck turned and continued slowly on his way. Johnson rose slightly and shot. The buck took off, but turned back to look briefly. The arrow had passed through both lungs, and the deer piled up a short distance away.
NUMBER EIGHT (TIE) — Hunter: Stephen Jansen
Score: 204-2/8 points
Location: Alberta
Year: 1967
A nice place to hang the V-belts. That’s what this deer rack was used for before the hunter’s nephew decided to put a tape to it. Yet rancher and hunter Stephen Jansen didn’t necessarily care for the antlers as they weren’t perfectly balanced, though the mice appreciated the dried head in Jansen’s shop.
Even if Jansen didn’t care for it, this buck was a doozy no one had ever seen before in the ranch country northwest of Calgary. The buck was 150 yards away when Jansen shot him with his Husqvarna .270. He writes, “It was the easiest whitetail I’ve ever shot.” And most certainly the biggest.
NUMBER EIGHT (TIE) — Hunter: Robert W. Smith
Score: 204-2/8 points
Location: Kentucky
Year: 2000
Robert Smith knew this buck prowled a two-acre thicket of brush so thick no one would ever go in there. So, he waited on the edge of it. He was up in his treestand when a doe came out. Robert was about to shoot her until this buck came out of the bushes behind the doe. The buck was 10 yards away and never knew what hit him.
The locals weren’t exactly pleased. One even took Smith to court for supposedly trespassing. Luckily, the young man who helped Smith extract the big buck was the county sheriff’s son. Smith eventually sold the rack to Bass Pro Shops and used the money to take a church youth group to Jamaica to fix up an orphanage.
Interested in Reading More About Whitetails?