Murder: True Crime Stories - UNSOLVED: The Martin Family Mystery 1

Episode Date: August 12, 2025

In 1958, the Martin family left their Portland home for a Sunday drive...and never returned. In this episode, we explore the baffling disappearance of Ken and Barbara Martin and their three daughters along Oregon’s Columbia River Gorge. As the search unfolds, investigators uncover troubling evidence, and a theory that one of their own family members may know more than they’re saying. Murder: True Crime Stories is a Crime House Original Podcast, powered by PAVE Studios. Listen wherever you get your podcasts. For ad-free listening and early access to episodes, subscribe to Crime House+ on Apple Podcasts. Don’t miss out on all things Murder: True Crime Stories! Instagram: @murdertruecrimepod | @Crimehouse TikTok: @Crimehouse Facebook: @crimehousestudios X: @crimehousemedia YouTube: @crimehousestudios To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This is Crime House. Missing person cases are always unsettling. One moment, someone's here, the next. They're just gone. Not only is it heartbreaking for those left behind, but it's also incredibly frustrating, especially when they vanish without a moment. trace. In 1958, Ken and Barbara Martin loaded up their station wagon and set off for a day trip with

their three daughters. They were driving along the Columbia River in Oregon and planned to return home to Portland that evening. Instead, they were never seen again. In the wake of their disappearance, the authorities searched tirelessly for any sign of the family, but it was like They'd vanished into thin air, and decades later, we still don't have the full story. In place of answers, the public has come to their own conclusions. Some believe it was nothing more than a tragic accident that the family was swept away in the river's powerful current. Still, others think there was something more sinister at play.

They believe the Martins weren't victims of Mother Nature. but victims of a stone-cold killer. People's lives are like a story. There's a beginning, a middle, and an end, but you don't always know which part you're on. Sometimes the final chapter arrives far too soon, and we don't always get to know the real. ending. I'm Carter Roy, and this is Murder True Crime Stories, a Crime House original

powered by Pave Studios that releases every Tuesday and Thursday. At Crime House, we want to express our gratitude to you, our community for making this possible. Please support us by rating, reviewing, and following Murder True Crime Stories wherever you get your podcasts. And to enhance your Murder True Crime Stories listening experience, subscribe to Crime House Plus on Apple Podcasts. You'll get ad-free listening, early access to every two-part series, and exciting bonus content. This is the first of two episodes on the Martin family. In December 1958, they left their home in the suburbs of Portland, Oregon, and were never seen again. The mystery of what happened to them has haunted the Pacific Northwest ever since.

Today, I'll introduce you to Ken and Barbara Martin, as well as their four children. I'll explain how this picture-perfect family seemed to have it all until a Christmas outing ended in tragedy. Following their disappearance, detectives searched tirelessly for the family, and eventually a harrowing discovery changed the course of the entire investigation. Next time, I'll continue the investigation into their disappearance, and the many theories about what might have actually happened that December day. I'll also tell you about the shocking modern-day discovery that might finally provide closure to the Martin's loved ones.

All that and more coming up. For over 60 years, the story of the Martin family, has captivated the country and the world. But when there's so much focus on what happened to them, it can be easy to forget that they weren't just a mystery to be solved. They were real people whose absence left a deep void for the loved ones they left behind. Unlike the rest of his family,

Ken Martin wasn't an Oregon native. He spent the first seven years of his life in South Dakota, where his father Edward was a reverend at a... was a reverend at a Presbyterian church. In 1911, Edward was offered a job as Northwest Superintendent for the American Sunday School Union. It was a big promotion, and he jumped at the opportunity, moving his family out west to Oregon. They settled in the Rose City Park neighborhood of Portland. The tree-line streets were quiet and suburban, perfect for a young family to put down roots.

and the Martins were in good company. There were plenty of other young kids in the area for seven-year-old Ken to play with. As the years passed, he became especially friendly with a girl named Barbara Cable. Born in 1910, Barbara was originally from Brownsville, a small town about 88 miles south of Portland. The Cables had apparently migrated there as pioneers in the early 19th century, before eventually making their way to Portland. It's not clear how or when they met, but as soon as Ken and Barbara crossed paths,

they shared an immediate connection. With her bright smile and outgoing personality, Barbara was hard to miss. In 1918, at eight years old, she even won junior queen at the first ever Portland Rose Festival. Over the next decade, Ken and Barbara continued to grow closer. By 1929, it was clear that they were in it for the long haul,

and they decided it was time to tie the knot. They got married that same year when Barbara was 19 and Ken was 25. Their life as newlyweds was happy and hectic. A year after their wedding, Ken and Barbara welcomed their first child, a son named Donald, around the same. same time, Ken hit a big milestone when he graduated from Oregon Agricultural College with a degree in electrical engineering. Soon after, he got a job with the Portland General Electric Company. At the time, the United States was in the thick of the Great Depression, and yet

the Martin seemed to be doing well. Despite widespread unemployment, Ken's job at PGE remained secure and reliable, so much so that while others were struggling to make ends meet, he and Barbara were able to purchase a newly built home in 1932. It was on Northeast 56th Avenue in Rose City Park, the neighborhood they'd both grown up in. Ken and Barbara dubbed their home the Martin Manor and had a custom sign next to the front door. Their good luck continued to hold, even when the U.S. entered World War II in 1941. Somehow, 35-year-old Ken managed to avoid the draft, but he still wanted to do his part.

So he volunteered as a forest lookout. Oregon, with its vast forests, supplied a lot of lumber for the war effort. Volunteers like Ken spent days at a time stationed in remote cabins, keeping watch for enemy aircraft as well as signs of forest fires. Ken was perfect for the job. He'd been an active member of the Trails Club of Oregon for years and had an intimate knowledge of the hills and forests surrounding Portland. For the next few years, this was Ken's main focus.

By the end of 1944, the war was months away from ending, and the Martins were eager to get back to what was most important, their family. That same year, 40-year-old Ken and 35, four-year-old Barbara welcomed their second child. They named her Barbara after her mother, but to friends and family, she was always Barbie. By then, their son Donald was 14. It's not clear if the large age gap between him and Barbie was intentional, but after her birth, Ken and Barbara seemed eager to continue expanding their family. Just one year later in 1945, they welcomed a second daughter named Virginia, their youngest and final child, Sue, was born in 1947.

To support the family of six, Ken took a new job at the local Eccles Electric Home Service Company sometime in 1948. In addition to his comfortable salary, he was given some shares of stock. Though they weren't wealthy, the Martin family was certainly doing well financially. Still, Ken wanted his kids to know the value of hard work. When 18-year-old Donald graduated high school that same year, Ken encouraged him to find a job. So he got a gig as a stock boy at the Meyer and Frank department store in downtown Portland. He ended up working there for three months before moving on to another challenge, enlisting in the Navy. It was a bittersweet moment for Ken and Barbara.

While they were proud of Donald, it was sad to see them fly the nest. Even so they had plenty to keep them busy. Along with raising three young girls, both of the Martin parents were very involved in the Portland community. Ken was a toastmaster and a Freemason. These organizations, which still exist today, emphasized self-improvement through connection and brother. Meanwhile, Barbara was on the PTA and active in several groups through the family's church. She was also a self-starter with a passion for sweepstakes and giveaways. At some point, she'd even created her own club called The Win Telex.

The details are sparse, but it seems like the focus was on pooling information about available contests and prepping entries. With Barbara's knowledge of the industry and the Martin's Goodfell, fortune, it's no surprise that she was really good at it. In the early 1950s, she won the family all sorts of modern luxuries like an automatic washing machine and a freezer. But the biggest prize came in 1954. That year, 44-year-old Barbara got her hands on a Jeep willies. Back then, jeeps looked even more like the military vehicles they started out as. The top, was completely open, there were no doors, and definitely no seatbelts. Basically, it was

totally impractical for a family with three young kids. So eventually Barbara traded it in for a red and white Ford station wagon. It was spacious and sturdy, perfect for the Martins who loved a good adventure. They had no idea. This very same station wagon would lead to their own undoing. How can you get even more of everything you love about Porter with the new BMOVI Porter MasterCard? Enjoy more freedom, more flexibility, more rewards, more of all the things. things you love. Need I say more? Get your ticket to more with the new BMO ViPorter MasterCard and get up to $2,400 in value in your first 13 months. Terms and conditions apply. Visit BMO.com slash ViPorter to learn more. Colgate Total is more than just your favorite toothpaste.

It's dedicated to advancing oral health. The new Colgate Total Active Prevention System features a reformulated toothpaste, innovative toothbrush, and a refreshing antibacterial mouthwash. all designed to work together to fight the root cause of common oral health issues, such as gingivitis, plaque, and tartar. Use the full routine twice daily and be dentist ready. Shop the Colgate Total Active Prevention System now at walmart.ca. describe them as close, loving, and generous. The kind of people who would go out of their way to help others. And no one represented that community spirit better than Ken, the family patriarch. Every holiday season, he would make plywood candy canes for all the houses on their block to set out as decorations.

It became a tradition and even earned their street the nickname Candy Lane. And that wasn't all. Ken looked and acted like Santa Claus. Eventually, his sister made him his own Santa suit. He'd dress up in it every year, going around the neighborhood, entertaining the younger kids. He even encouraged parents to drop off a small present at Martin Manor, which he'd hand a liver to their children on Christmas Eve. Needless to say, the Martins took the holiday very seriously.

their place was decked out in lights and greenery. In fact, one of their favorite traditions was going to gather bows and branches to make their own garlands and wreaths. They planned to get this year's hall on December 7th. That would give them plenty of time to get all the decorations ready by the time Christmas rolled around. That Sunday, the family woke up and had breakfast. Afterwards, Barbara's cousins came by the house, Normally they all had Sunday dinner together, but this time the Martins had to decline.

Can explain they were going to look for Christmas greenery that afternoon. He didn't say exactly where they were headed other than up the highway, which meant Highway 30. The stunning roadway ran along the Columbia River Gorge and was surrounded by lush forests. Their guests left around noon, and the Martins got ready for their outing. Ken prepped their Ford station wagon by taking out the third row of seats to make room for their hall. Once everyone was dressed and ready, the family set out sometime between 1 and 2 p.m. A few neighbors glimpsed their red and white Ford leaving the neighborhood, carrying Ken, Barbara, and their three girls. 14-year-old Barbie, 13-year-old Virginia, and 11-year-old Sue.

but the car and the Martins never reappeared. By the following morning, Monday, December 8th, the Martin's neighbors noticed something was wrong. At 7.30 a.m., Ken's work truck was still in the driveway, but the station wagon was nowhere to be seen, which was really odd. To say Ken was meticulous with his schedule would be an understatement. He was described as,

the type of man you could set your alarm clock by. So when Ken's boss, Mr. Eccles got to the office and saw Ken wasn't there, he was also pretty surprised. Still, he figured maybe Ken was just running late. But as the day wore on and Ken never showed, Mr. Eccles started to worry. If Ken couldn't come in for some reason, he would have called to let Mr. Eccles know. The teachers at the girls' school were just as alarmed. Normally, Barbara was good about letting them know when her daughters were going to be out.

But that day, they were marked absent without any notice. Ken's sister, Charlotte, taught second grade at the elementary school Sue and Virginia went to. She tried to get a hold of her brother to find out what was going on, but no one answered their house phone. As day turned into night, it became clear that nobody knew where the Martins were. Finally, around 9.30 p.m., a family friend called the Multnomah County Police Department to tell them the Martins were missing. Officers arrived at Martin Manor around 11 p.m. It was dark and quiet, like every other house on the block. But as the police started poking around the outside, the community slowly started to bubble with life. Hearing the commotion, concerned neighbors turned up.

They offered to help however they could, and one of them called Charlotte. She had a key to the house, and she and her husband rushed over to let the officers inside. But there weren't many clues there either. It was clear that the family had planned to return home after a few hours. There were dishes in the sink and the Sunday paper still out on the kitchen table. Someone, probably Barbara, had left a package of ground beef near the sink. Now the once-frozen container had a puddle of water around it. All told, nothing seemed out of place.

Luggage and toothbrushes were in their usual spots and there were clothes still in the washing machine, which ruled out the possibility that the Martins had gone on some unplanned vacation. While that was good to know, it didn't help explain where they were, and investigators had no clue where to even start looking. For starters, the gorge is huge. The river canyon is 80 miles long and cuts through the Cascade Mountain Range. The family could have stopped anywhere. along Highway 30 to gather greenery.

But Charlotte's best guess was a place called Larch Mountain, less than an hour east of Portland along Highway 30. It was a popular destination for Portlanders looking to get Christmas trees. The Martins had gone there in the past, so it was a logical place to start. Multnomah County PD sent a couple of cars out that night. But it was already late in the evening and their chance, of spotting the Martins or their car were slim. The real searching would have to wait until the next morning.

By Tuesday, December 9th, two days after the Martins were last seen, the story was already big news. The Argonian published a front page article about the missing family, calling for any tips the public had as well as volunteers to help search for them. Right away, tips and sightings poured in, Many callers reported seeing Ken and his family at a Christmas tree farm, coincidentally called Martin's acreage. But when police spoke to the owners,

neither could be sure they'd seen or spoken to the lost Martins that day. Investigators knew they had to widen their scope. They decided to expand their search area, the 60-mile stretch of Highway 30 from the Martin's front door to Hood River, where the gorge's pine forests ended, spanned multiple counties. Covering that much ground required a lot of manpower. Between all the law enforcement agencies, the Forest Service, loved ones, and concerned strangers, the Orgonian estimated over a thousand people combed the area over the next few weeks.

Still, it wasn't until December 23rd that anyone found, real evidence that the Martins had actually been near the gorge that day. Surprisingly, that evidence came from their own mailbox. Charlotte had been watching over her brother's house, stopping by periodically to check on things. As she went through the mail, she opened a credit card slip. It showed that Ken's card was used to buy five gallons of gas at a Chevron station in Cascade, Locks on December 7th, the day the Martins went missing. Finally, it felt like there was a break in the case.

Cascade Locks was along the gorge in Hood River County, so their sheriff followed up on the lead by going to the gas station the next day, Christmas Eve. Unfortunately, the owner was out of town for the holiday, but the employees working that day were able to check their records for December 7th. Ken's card was the seventh one charged after 1 p.m. Still, with a smattering of cash transactions happening in between, it was impossible to get a more precise time. Finally, a few days later, the owner was back in.

He didn't remember much about the Martins except that he'd seen them. Apparently, Barbara needed to use the bathroom. Although that stuck out to him, none of the other details did. As far as the timing, he thought maybe he'd seen them around 4 p.m. And he was pretty sure they were still headed east away from Portland when they left. With that, the trail faded yet again. What should have been a happy holiday season had become a family tragedy.

and while the police were still actively investigating, detectives couldn't help but notice just how few clues there were. It got them thinking. How could an entire family disappear without a trace? Unless someone had deliberately hidden evidence, someone who wanted them gone. Hi, I'm Mama Jules, your host of Ono Media's newest podcast, Rise and Crime, your morning caffeine crime hit.

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The best part is Rise and Crime is available everywhere. Watch us on YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram, and listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you catch your favorite podcasts. On December 7, 1958, Ken and Barbara Martin went to the Columbia Gorge in Oregon with their three daughters, 14-year-old Barbie, 13-year-old Virginia, and 11-year-old Sue. They plan to spend the afternoon gathering Christmas decorations, but hours turned into days, and the Martin still hadn't returned to their Portland home. In the weeks, following their disappearance,

Since, hundreds of people comb the Oregon wilderness for any sign of the missing Martins. All of their friends and family were part of the search party, except for one person. Their eldest child, 28-year-old Donald. At the time, Don was living in New York. It's possible he couldn't get across the country to Oregon in time to help with the initial search. but after several weeks, he still hadn't arrived. Plenty of people thought this was odd, including Multnomah County Detective Walter Graven.

But before he made any rash decisions, Detective Graven decided to look into Dawn some more, and what he discovered only made him more suspicious. After enlisting in the Navy in 1914, Dawn was honorably discharged six years later in 1954 at 23 years old. He returned home to Oregon and moved into an apartment near Portland State University. To make ends meet, he worked at the Meyer and Frank apartment store where he'd previously been a stock boy. This time around, he was in charge of creating window displays.

Don was a pretty artistic guy, so it was definitely a better fit. But it quickly became clear he was doing more than curating the merchandise. In September 1954, he was fired for stealing around $2,000 worth of goods. Today, that would be equivalent of about $20,000. Reading over the file, Detective Graven noticed something strange. According to the report, Don blamed the theft on a falling out with his family. Allegedly, he told his parents that he was gay and they disapproved.

It's not clear if he stole the items as an act of rebellion or because his family refused to help him out financially and he was struggling to get by. Whatever the case, Ken personally paid the store back for most of the stolen goods. He also assured them that Don would get on the straight and narrow, if they drop the charges, can promise to send him to Trinity College in Connecticut. The plan was for Don to study religion and possibly follow in his grandfather's footsteps by becoming a pastor. That didn't last long, though. Instead, Don moved to New York and enrolled at Hunter College, a public university in the city. He took a few art classes before re-enlisting in the Navy in 1957.

It definitely seemed like Don was a black sheep. Even so, Detective Graven knew that family squabbles weren't enough to accuse someone of murder. But then, he looked at the financials. With the rest of the family out of the picture, Don stood to inherit his parents' entire estate. That included the house. all the money in their accounts and their life insurance.

Now, that was certainly a possible motive. It still didn't explain how he could have made his entire family disappear, though. Various witnesses confirmed that Don was in New York on and around December 7, 1958. If he were somehow behind what happened, he would have needed help from someone in Oregon. Detective Graven didn't know it at the time, but someone had already recovered a piece of compelling evidence to support his theory. On January 18, 1959, over a month after the Martin family vanished, a concerned citizen found a gun on the side of the highway near Cascade locks.

They immediately turned it over to the Hood River County. police. The gun was in rough shape. The handle was damaged, as if it had been used to bludgeon something. It was also covered in a substance that looked a lot like dried blood. For some reason, the sheriff wasn't particularly interested in the weapon. He looked it over and gave it back to the guy who'd found it. Even more concerning, none of this was reported to the mulknotice. Alma County investigators like Detective Graven until months later in April of 1959. When Graven learned about the gun, he immediately tracked it down, and not just because it was a bloody weapon that had been found within the search area. Graven knew something. No one else did.

After Don stole all those items from the department store, only a few things weren't recovered. including a 38-caliber cult commander, the same type of gun as the one that was found in Cascade Locks. And when Graven finally got his hands on it, he was able to confirm the serial numbers matched. Things were looking very bad for Don Martin. Even if he hadn't been the one to pull the trigger, It was possible that his weapon had been used to kill the rest of his family.

Of course, at that point, there was still a lot that Detective Graven didn't know. And before doing anything else, he needed to talk to Dawn face to face. It turned out, his main suspect was pretty difficult to track down. Although the search for his family was ongoing, Dawn seemingly refused to come home, and none of the higher-ups in law enforcement thought there was enough evidence to make him. By the spring of 1959,

the Martens had been missing for five months, with no new information coming in, coverage of their disappearance slowed, and public interest waned. Then on May 3rd, there was finally a major development. A tugboat crew was working in the Columbia River 30 miles west of Cascade Locks near Camus, Washington. Along the way, they spotted what looked like a bundle of clothes floating in a shallow area near the shore.

They maneuvered closer and saw it was the body of a small girl. By the end of the day, authorities confirmed it was the body of 11-year-old Sue Martin. And that wasn't all. The very next day, another body turned up. It was 13-year-old Virginia Martin. The back-to-back discoveries rocked the city of Portland. After months without any progress, finally seemed like the Martin's family and friends would get some closure.

Sadly, it would soon become clear. The truth about what happened that fateful December day, was murkier than the depths of the Columbia River, and it would take decades to even scratch the surface. Thanks so much for joining us. I'm Carter Roy, and this is Murder, True Prime Stories. Come back Thursday for part. 2. Murder True Crime Stories is a Crime House original powered by Pave Studios. Here at

Crime House, we want to thank each and every one of you for your support. If you like what you heard today, reach out on social media at Crime House on TikTok and Instagram. Don't forget to rate, review, and follow Murder True Crime Stories wherever you get your podcasts. Your feedback truly makes a difference. And to enhance your murder, true crime, Story's listening experience, subscribe to Crime House Plus on Apple Podcasts. You'll get every episode ad-free, and instead of having to wait for each episode of a two-part series, you'll get access to both at once, plus exciting bonus content. We'll be back on Thursday.

Murder True Crime Stories is hosted by me, Carter Roy, and is a Crime House original powered by Pave Studios. This episode was brought to life by the Murder True Crime Stories. True Crime Stories team, Max Cutler, Ron Shapiro, Alex Benadon, Natalie Pertzowski, Lori Marinelli, Sarah Camp, Megan Hennam, and Russell Nash. Thank you for joining us.