Summary

On December 7, 1958, the Martin family of Portland, Oregon, disappeared in the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area. 54-year-old Kenneth Martin; his wife, 48-year-old Barbara; and the couple's three daughters, 14-year-old Barbara, who was known as "Barbie", 13-year-old Virginia, and 11-year-old Susan, took a day trip to gather greenery for Christmas decoration and were never heard from again. Kenneth and Barbara's son, Donald, was in the United States Navy and stationed in New York State at the time of the disappearance.

Several months after the family's disappearance, the bodies of Susan and Virginia were discovered on the shores of the Columbia River, roughly thirty miles apart from each other. Despite an exhaustive investigation including extensive dive operations over the years by both the Hood River County and Multnomah County Sheriff’s Offices, the bodies of Kenneth, Barbara, and Barbie were not recovered, their vehicle could not be found, and the case went cold. Details of the case, and the three missing people, were entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) as UP149885, UP149889, and UP149893.

In late 2024, Archer Mayo, a private search and recovery diver, located what he believed to be the Martin vehicle, a 1954 Ford station wagon, upside down in a large underwater pit in the Columbia River. In March 2025, the Hood River County Sheriff's Office attempted to pull the car to the surface using a crane. Unfortunately, the crane only succeeded in pulling the undercarriage off the rusted 1950's vehicle, leaving the passenger cabin upside down in the underwater pit. The diver continued to explore the wreckage. In August 2025, he located human remains, which were turned over to the Hood River County Sheriff's Office.

In late 2025, investigators teamed with Othram to leverage technology that could help to identify the human remains. Officials with the Hood River County Sheriff's Office and Oregon State Medical Examiner's Office worked together to submit forensic evidence to Othram's laboratory headquartered in The Woodlands, Texas.

At Othram, scientists reviewed details of the case, determining that advanced DNA testing could help to identify the remains found in the river. Despite the fact that these skeletal remains were under water, likely for decades, Othram scientists successfully developed a DNA extract from the provided skeletal remains. Using Forensic-Grade Genome Sequencing®, a comprehensive SNP profile was built for the individual.

Subsequently, a reference DNA sample belonging to a relative of the missing Martin family members was collected and their DNA was sequenced. The relative's DNA profile was compared to the DNA profile of the unknown person using Othram's KinSNP® Rapid Relationship Testing. This comparison assisted investigators in the positive identification of the remains, which are now known to belong to Kenneth Martin.

The Oregon State Medical Examiner's Office has ruled that, based on the circumstances of the search and recovery, all remaining family members--Ken, Barbara, and Barbie--are now considered identified. The Hood River County Sheriff's Office continues to investigate exactly what happened to the Martin family.

Funding for the advanced DNA testing used in this case was provided byNamUs, a national program that assists the criminal justice community with the investigation and resolution of missing, unidentified, and unclaimed persons cases across the United States and its territories. NamUs is funded and administered by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) and is managed through a contract with Research Triangle Institute International.

This is the third publicly announced case in the State of Oregon where officials leveraged Othram’s technology. Explore other cases on Othram’s website.