Martin Family Remains Identified After 68 Years In Hood River County

CASCADE LOCKS, Ore. — The Oregon State Medical Examiner’s Office has identified the remains of Kenneth Martin, Barbara Martin, and their daughter Barbie Martin through advanced DNA analysis conducted by forensic laboratory Othram, Inc., following the discovery of remains inside the wreckage of the family’s vehicle recovered from the Columbia River.

The Hood River County Sheriff’s Office announced it has now concluded its investigation, determining there is no evidence of criminal activity in the decades-old case.

The Martin family disappeared in December 1958 while reportedly traveling through the Columbia River Gorge to gather Christmas greenery. Months after their disappearance, the remains of two daughters, Virginia (13) and Susan (11), were recovered downstream. However, Kenneth Martin, Barbara Martin, and their eldest daughter, Barbara “Barbie” Martin (14), were never located despite extensive search and dive efforts at the time.

The case remained unsolved for decades until a major development in 2024, when a private diver located what appeared to be the Martin family’s vehicle lodged in a catch-basin area near the original locks in Cascade Locks, Oregon. In early 2025, the Hood River County Sheriff’s Office arranged for recovery efforts using a crane. Due to heavy sedimentation, only the vehicle’s frame and limited components could be retrieved.

Subsequent analysis of the recovered materials, along with additional items discovered by the diver, led investigators to confirm the wreckage as the Martin family car.

Later in 2025, the diver recovered human remains from the river, which were turned over to the Hood River County Sheriff’s Office and then forwarded to the Oregon State Medical Examiner’s Office for examination.

To assist in identification, investigators partnered with Othram, Inc., a forensic genetics laboratory based in The Woodlands, Texas, along with support from the Research Triangle Institute (RTI). The lab utilized forensic genetic genealogy techniques, including identity inference methods that allow scientists to identify individuals even in the absence of direct reference samples.

Scientists successfully developed a Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) profile from one set of remains. SNP profiles, which analyze common genetic variations across the genome, are widely used in forensic genealogy to establish familial relationships.

That profile was then compared with reference DNA provided by known relatives of the Martin family, allowing investigators to confirm biological relationships with a high degree of confidence. Kenneth Martin was positively identified through this process.

Based on the circumstances of recovery and supporting anthropological analysis, investigators also identified the remaining two individuals as Barbara Martin and Barbara “Barbie” Martin.

Authorities say the identifications bring resolution to a case that spanned nearly seven decades and highlight the role of modern forensic genetic genealogy in solving long-cold missing persons investigations.