In addition to the 30WCF (30-30) others have mentioned I also have leverguns in both 45colt or 357mag; carbines and 24" rifles in each caliber. All are fun to shoot and would work just fine for the OP's purposes. As a truck gun on the farm, I agree that a compact levergun shooting one of the pistol bullet calibers would be perfect.
While all are relatively inexpensive to handload for, as the OP hasn't said if he handloads, I'd suggest he consider the 357mag over the other calibers as it's the most economical to shoot using commercial ammo.
As the owner of 2ea Rossi M92s in 357mag; a 20" rd bbl carbine and a 24" oct bbl rifle, I really like the compact design. Both are pretty darn accurate ( I shoot the 24" rifle out at 300yds with a tang and globe front sight) and with over 4K rds through each, both have been very reliable.
The 20" carbine is probably the best bet for the OP as it has a great balance and performance and as the Rossis shoot both 38spl and 357mag ammo, it's economical to shoot as well. In addition, both 38spl and 357mag ammo is readily available everywhere in various powers and bullet weights; the most common being 125grn and 158grn.
So he could use 38spl ammo for plinking, decent 357mag ammo for varmints and such, and Buffalo Bore's 357mag heavy that produces 2,153fps with a 158grn bullet for deer hunting out to 100yds.