Mystery of family who vanished in 1958 finally 'solved' thanks to grim river discovery

The mystery of a family who disappeared more than 60 years ago has finally been 'solved' after a diver made a shocking discovery.

On December 7, 1958, parents Kenneth and Barbara Martin and their three daughters went Christmas shopping as they travelled by car. However, none of the Martin family returned home following that fateful day.

The family were reported missing after the parents failed to turn up to work two days later. A case was launched withauthorities believing they could have drowned after the car accidentally backed into a river.

A month later, a gun was found near where they went missing, suggesting one of them had been shot. However, it wasn't collected as evidence at the time and decades later, a widow of the gun owner told local news that it had dry blood on it.

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In May 1959, the bodies of the two youngest daughters, Virginia, 13 and Sue, 11, were found floating in a river, and their deaths were ruled as drowning. But the oldest daughter, Barbara, 14, and their parents were never found.

The discovery of only two of the bodies led to further confusion and speculation. Their eldest son, Donald Martin, who was 28 and living in New York at the time, told authorities that he didn't believe their deaths were an accident.

For the past seven years, independent diver Archer Mayo has taken matters into his own hands in a bid to get some answers to this unresolved case.

On a quest to find out what happened to the family, Mayo used predictive modelling to sensationally find the family's car, a station wagon, in November last year. The vehicle was found in what is known as the "pit" of the river between Oregon and Washington, and Mayo reported his discovery to the authorities.

As an experienced diver, Mayo said he's completed "hundreds" of dives in the river. He previously told Columbia Gorge News: "I can move around with zero visibility in this giant pit, because I’ve spent so much of my lifetime trying to solve this mystery."

A recovery of the car was launched, but due to the car's debris and missing parts, it was difficult to pull out of the river. As a result of this, the car split and parts remained in the river, reports Oregon Live.

But this didn't stop Mayo from his efforts, and this summer, he decided to take another look at the car and returned to the river. With more access to the car, having split, Mayo was able to dive down and dig out evidence that had long been submerged.

This led to a startling discovery as he reportedly recovered human remains, including some that were found inside a nylon stocking. He reported his findings to the Hood River County Sheriff's Office and is yet to hear if the remains are of the Martin family who vanished all those years ago.

It is understood that the case is still an open investigation. And despite speculation that it wasn't an accident, a murder investigation has never been carried out, and police have never named any suspects.

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