After a dedicated effort spanning two days, a crane successfully extracted a Ford station wagon from the Columbia River on Friday. Authorities suspect the vehicle could belong to an Oregon family that vanished 66 years ago during a trip to gather Christmas greenery.
The extraction revealed no human remains in the vehicle, which was retrieved within ten minutes. Video footage captured by divers displayed the body of the car detaching during the lift, leaving only the frame and wheels to emerge above water. The remnants of the car will be wrapped and relocated to a storage facility. There, a forensic team aims to gather more insights relating to its original owners, stated Pete Hughes, a deputy from the Hood River County Sheriff’s office. He added that officials are confident about their discovery.
“Everything matches,” Hughes mentioned. “The color, make, and model all align with the description of the Martin family’s car.”
The Martin family’s mysterious disappearance attracted national attention at the time, prompting speculation about potential foul play and spurring a reward of $1,000 for information. An article from 1959 pondered, “Where do you search if every logical clue has already been explored?”
Two of the five children from the family were found deceased in the Columbia River later that same year, while the remaining family members were never located. Recovery efforts were paused just before nightfall on Thursday and commenced again early Friday, focusing on clearing the mud encasing much of the vehicle.
Archer Mayo, a diver with a seven-year history of searching for the car, finally pinpointed its location last fall at a depth of around 50 feet (15 meters). The vehicle, flipped over and hidden under layers of mud, salmon remains, silt, and mussel shells, was discovered by Mayo, according to his representative Ian Costello. “This is a remarkable breakthrough in a case that’s lingered in the minds of Portland’s residents for decades,” Costello commented.
Mayo also located additional cars in the area. Deputy Hughes noted that one vehicle had already been identified, while another was an unknown Volkswagen. Investigators will now focus on examining engine and chassis numbers to conclusively identify the vehicle as belonging to the Martin family. Meanwhile, the vehicle’s body will remain submerged for now.
On December 7, 1958, Ken and Barbara Martin embarked on a journey with their three daughters—Barbara, Virginia, and Sue—to the mountains to collect Christmas greenery, as reported by stories at the time. They left their home with comics scattered on the floor, dishes in the sink, and laundry mid-cycle in the machine. Tragically, they never returned.
The investigation into the family’s movements centered around a credit card transaction made by Ken Martin for gasoline at a station near Cascade Locks, a community along the Columbia River about 40 miles east of Portland.
At the time, police theories suggested that the family’s red and white station wagon might have plummeted into an isolated river or canyon. This credit card record was a rare clue in their mysterious journey.
A waitress reported witnessing a family fitting the Martins’ description at a snack bar near Cascade Locks before sunset. They had been searching for a Christmas tree and had placed an order for hamburgers, fries, milk, and dessert, totaling $4.15.
Five months post-disappearance, the remains of the youngest daughter were discovered in a Columbia River slough. Further discoveries saw her sister Virginia found upstream the following day. The whereabouts of the other family members remained a mystery, prompting continued searches.
The Martins’ elder son, Don, a Marine veteran studying at Columbia University, expressed his belief that his family perished. “It’s always been a case of significant public interest,” Hughes remarked on Thursday.
Following Mayo’s provision of partial license plate details and other identifiers, the sheriff’s office worked alongside various agencies to orchestrate the car’s retrieval. Mayo, who operates a business uncovering river-lost items like personal belongings and also assists in recovering drowning victims, stumbled upon the Martin family story while seeking a sunken research vessel.
Driven by curiosity, Mayo conducted extensive research into the family. Leveraging modeling techniques, he managed to approximate the vehicle’s location.