{"id":78709,"date":"2026-04-17T12:27:49","date_gmt":"2026-04-17T12:27:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/diyhaven858.wasmer.app\/index.php\/remains-found-in-car-idd-as-family-who-mysteriously-vanished-in-1958\/"},"modified":"2026-04-17T12:27:49","modified_gmt":"2026-04-17T12:27:49","slug":"remains-found-in-car-idd-as-family-who-mysteriously-vanished-in-1958","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/diyhaven858.wasmer.app\/index.php\/remains-found-in-car-idd-as-family-who-mysteriously-vanished-in-1958\/","title":{"rendered":"Remains found in car ID&#8217;d as family who mysteriously vanished in 1958"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div data-article-body=\"true\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">DNA analysis has identified the remains found in a car in the Columbia River as those of an Oregon family that went missing in 1958 while on a trip to find Christmas greenery, authorities said Thursday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The state medical examiner&#8217;s office has identified parents Kenneth and Barbara Martin and their daughter Barbie from remains located in the river within the wreckage of the car, the Hood River County Sheriff&#8217;s Office said. The sheriff&#8217;s office said it concluded its investigation and found no evidence of a crime.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The Ford station wagon thought to belong to the family was found in 2024 by Archer Mayo, a diver who had been looking for it for several years. Authorities pulled part of the car from the river the following year.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img alt=\"he Hood River County Sheriff&amp;#39;s Office and a team of divers retrieve a vehicle from the Columbia River, March 7, 2025, in Cascade Locks, Ore.&amp;nbsp; \/ Credit: Beth Nakamura\/The Oregonian via AP, File\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"667\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/qJwx58.Zd7dsSVLfTX2oqg--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTY2NztjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/cbs_news_897\/03d65b61b9d41b757687e42f206e6762\"\/><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-0 size-full\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-3 right-3 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed bottom-0 left-0 right-0 top-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p>he Hood River County Sheriff&#8217;s Office and a team of divers retrieve a vehicle from the Columbia River, March 7, 2025, in Cascade Locks, Ore. \/ Credit: Beth Nakamura\/The Oregonian via AP, File<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The family vanished in December of 1958. The bodies of two of the family&#8217;s children were found months after the disappearance, but the other members never turned up.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The search for the Martin family was a national news story at the time and led some to speculate about the possibility of foul play, with a $1,000 reward offered for information.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;Where do you search if you&#8217;ve already searched every place logic and fragmentary clues would suggest?&#8221; an Associated Press article asked in 1959, months after the disappearance.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Only the frame and some attached components were retrieved from the water because of the &#8220;extent to which the vehicle had been encased in sediment,&#8221; the sheriff&#8217;s office said. Analysis of those items allowed investigators to conclude that it was indeed the Martin family&#8217;s car.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Later in 2025, the diver located human remains that were ultimately turned over to the state medical examiner&#8217;s office.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img alt=\"&amp;nbsp; The Martin family vanished in December of 1958.&amp;nbsp; \/ Credit: Othram Inc.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/sL3DD_Gq821ktDSvPotzvA--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTQyMDtoPTQyMDtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/cbs_news_897\/2c16f58726db4120e47d61596477fd6d\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p> The Martin family vanished in December of 1958. \/ Credit: Othram Inc.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Scientists developed DNA extracts from the remains and generated a profile that was compared with relatives of the Martin family, allowing for the identifications, authorities said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Othram, a DNA lab in Texas, did forensic analysis on the remains, which ultimately led to the positive identification.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Othram&#8217;s Colby Lasyone told CBS affiliate KOIN-TV that more than a dozen experts worked on the case, noting they extracted a bone sample and used advanced techniques to isolate and analyze the DNA. DNA comparisons with a living relative positively identified Kenneth Martin.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;Skeletal remains that have been submerged in water for decades can be particularly challenging to work with,&#8221; Lasyone said. &#8220;Unfortunately, the skeletal remains for the other individuals were too degraded and couldn&#8217;t be worked with.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Mayo, the diver who found the car, told KOIN-TV he was gratified the case was finally solved.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;It&#8217;s not going to get more resolved than it is now and so that feels good,&#8221; Mayo told the station. &#8220;And that really lets us write the last chapter of that book.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">In 2020,\u00a0KOIN-TV did a four-part podcast on the case.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img alt=\"Searchers return to the spot in 1999, where they believed the Martin family may have disappeared and compared the scene with a photo of it from 1959, front.&amp;nbsp; \/ Credit: The Oregonian via AP, file\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"529\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/uXnXluVuK48.VW.U2p4TOA--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTUyOTtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/cbs_news_897\/dfe328f99dcf8b05652bfcffd64ae0a9\"\/><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-0 size-full\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-3 right-3 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed bottom-0 left-0 right-0 top-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p>Searchers return to the spot in 1999, where they believed the Martin family may have disappeared and compared the scene with a photo of it from 1959, front. \/ Credit: The Oregonian via AP, file<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a ><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>DNA analysis has identified the remains found in a car in the Columbia River as those of an Oregon family that went missing in 1958 while on a trip to find Christmas greenery, authorities said Thursday. The state medical examiner&#8217;s office has identified parents Kenneth and Barbara Martin and their daughter Barbie from remains located [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":78710,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_daextam_enable_autolinks":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-78709","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-breaking-news"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/diyhaven858.wasmer.app\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/03d65b61b9d41b757687e42f206e6762.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/diyhaven858.wasmer.app\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78709","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/diyhaven858.wasmer.app\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/diyhaven858.wasmer.app\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diyhaven858.wasmer.app\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diyhaven858.wasmer.app\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=78709"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/diyhaven858.wasmer.app\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78709\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diyhaven858.wasmer.app\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/78710"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/diyhaven858.wasmer.app\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=78709"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diyhaven858.wasmer.app\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=78709"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diyhaven858.wasmer.app\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=78709"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}