A woman’s remains were found in Oregon in 1976. They’ve been identified 49 years later thanks to DNA
September 18, 2025
Oregon authorities say DNA has helped identify a woman’s remains after 49 years. Oregon State Police announced this week that the remains of Marion Vinetta Nagle McWhorter were identified in June. She was last seen at a shopping mall in a Portland suburb in 1974 when she was 21. Her remains were found near a mountain creek in Oregon’s Central Cascades in 1976,. She remained unidentified for decades. State police say a breakthrough came this year when information uploaded to a commercial ancestry website helped genealogists find a surviving sister. Police contacted the sister, whose DNA helped confirm the identity of the remains.