Greer Spring is a magnificent site where a river wells up from a limestone spring in the Ozark Mountains of southern Missouri. Greer Spring is a principle tributary to the National Wild & Scenic Eleven Point River. The Spring is a scenic treasure flowing through a rugged, forested, mile-long gorge before meeting the Eleven Point. The lands surrounding Greer Spring contain an outstanding hardwood riparian woodland, one of the few extensive intact riparian forests in the Ozark region. For decades, conservationists tried to protect the Spring and surrounding land, but efforts failed due to uncertain management strategies. In 1991, Western Rivers Conservancy purchased the 6,900-acre property surrounding Greer Spring, transferred the land to the Mark Twain National Forest and worked to create a special management area. The critical core of 1,500 acres around the Spring was included in the Eleven Point Wild & Scenic River corridor. The remaining 5,400 acres have become the Greer Spring Special Management Area, leaving the area safe from mining, commercial logging and road-building. The Anheuser-Busch Foundation contributed a major grant for the purchase.

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