JOSEPHINE COUNTY, Ore. (Mar. 24, 2026) — Human remains discovered nearly five decades ago in southwestern Oregon have been identified as a Montana teenager who vanished in 1974, authorities said.
The Oregon State Medical Examiner’s Office announced that the remains, found in 1978 near Williams in Josephine County, were confirmed on Feb. 26, 2026, to be those of Mark Smith, who was 19 when he disappeared after leaving his home in Billings, Montana.
Smith was last seen in 1974. The final known photograph of him was taken at his sister’s wedding in September 1973. His family told investigators they had thought of him every day during the more than 50 years since his disappearance.
A logging crew discovered the partial, skeletal remains of a young person on May 9, 1978, near Holcomb Peak. Only a skull and a fragment of a shoulder blade were recovered, along with clothing remnants including part of a shirt and a brown sweater. Despite an investigation by the Josephine County Sheriff’s Office, no additional remains were found and the individual could not be identified at the time.
Initial examinations by a forensic pathologist and odontologist suggested the remains may have belonged to a female between the ages of 16 and 18.
The case was revisited decades later. In 2020, the State Medical Examiner’s Office submitted the remains to the University of North Texas for DNA testing. Although there was not enough nuclear DNA to create a profile for a national database, testing determined the remains belonged to a male, prompting a renewed search among missing persons cases.
That same year, the agency partnered with DNA Labs International to pursue forensic genetic genealogy. Early efforts were unsuccessful, and the case remained unresolved despite assistance from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, which commissioned a facial reconstruction in hopes of generating leads.
Between 2023 and 2024, genealogists developed partial family connections based on ancestry data, but were unable to identify the individual. The breakthrough came in September 2025, when a newly uploaded DNA profile allowed researchers to expand a family tree and identify a group of siblings, including one who had disappeared in the mid-1970s.
Investigators contacted the family, who confirmed that their brother, Mark Smith, born Oct. 4, 1954, had been missing since 1974.
Authorities collected DNA samples from Smith’s siblings, and an additional tooth from the remains was submitted for testing. On Feb. 25, 2026, DNA Labs International confirmed a sibling-level match, leading officials to formally identify the remains.
The family was notified shortly after the confirmation.
Officials said there is no evidence of foul play, but the investigation into the circumstances of Smith’s death remains open.
“We are grateful that Mark has finally been returned to his family,” said Hailey Collord-Stalder, the state’s forensic anthropologist. “This identification reflects years of persistence, scientific collaboration, and the evolving power of forensic genetic genealogy.”
The medical examiner’s office credited multiple partners for their role in the case, including DNA Labs International, the University of North Texas, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, and the Josephine County Sheriff’s Office.
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