The Ford station wagon thought to belong to the family was found in 2024 by a diver who had been looking for it for several years. Authorities pulled part of the car from the river the following year. Only the frame and some attached components were retrieved from the water because of the extent to which the vehicle had been encased in sediment. Analysis of those items allowed investigators to conclude that it was indeed the Martin family's car.
The family vanished in December 1958. The bodies of two of the family's children were found months after the disappearance, but the other members never turned up. 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. The sheriff's office concluded its investigation and found no evidence of a crime.
Later in 2025, the diver located human remains that were ultimately turned over to the state medical examiner's office. Scientists developed DNA extracts from the remains and generated a profile that was compared with relatives of the Martin family, allowing for the identifications.
It remains unknown what caused the car to end up in the Columbia River or how the family died. The specific DNA techniques used to identify the remains have not been disclosed.