Identified! WA - Clark Co., Fem Skeletal Remains, near Fly Creek, Feb'80 - Sandy Morden

Hi Gardener1850, maybe I missed it but where did you see a note about her seen in May 1977? Is is because of this frase? "Records indicate Sandy may have still been in school in May of 1977, but it’s not clear. That lack of clarity fits with the rest of the case"

According to the custody timeline (thanks to Tmmeye) her dad had custody in 1977, the parents not communicating anymore, so maybe her mother thought a call would have been blocked and a send postcard taken away by her ex-husband. To be sure her daughter got her birthday wishes she put an add. Maybe she didn't know he was away a lot.

In 1974 Katheryn had custody. On the pictures of a family gathering we can see her and dad. It looks like there was still contact between her parents, although they were divorced by that time: "Diner at Kathy's"....could be any Kathy but I think it was at her mother's.

her mother went by Irene though.
 
I have the feeling this sweet girl was pushed around from dad to mom to dad etc. Mom being to busy with herself, dad working hard, away from home a lot. She didn't have a brother nor a sister....quit lonesome. Although I see a kind of happy girl on the pictures I wonder what was underneath it. JMO. Were there other familie members, (parent's) friends, teachers, neighbors, housekeepers, in her live, taking care of her, looking after her in some way? She was still so young.
 
According to the Daily Beast, Sandy was with her father a lot, which leads me to recant my statement of timing earlier, although I will work with several articles to find more details of parents and locations, as well as dates.
 
Now that things are adjusted, it appears more evident why her mom sent the newspaper note.
Her mom never saw her and wanted her to know she loved her, as any caring mother would do so. It appears dad also neglected her in some aspects, as leaving her alone and putting work over his own daughter.
 
I have a new theory of what happened to Sandy, as it would make sense given what is in her life.

Sandy was trying to leave her father in Portland, Oregon, as he probably wasn’t home enough and she felt unloved. She most likely made plans to find a way to Vancouver while he was away. Vancouver is in close proximity to Amboy, but we do not know if, in fact, she made it to her mother. I believe she got a ride to Vancouver or a close area from the wrong person, and was later dumped in Fly Creek.
 
I'm not sure of the general age of those posting here, but I remember birthday announcements in the paper being fairly common in the 70s,80s and even a bit beyond. Older people still do it for certain birthdays, anniversaries, etc. in the small town where I currently live. (I'm a few years younger than Sandy would be if she was still alive.)

We used to think it was cool. Kind of a status thing to have any mention in the paper.
 
So good to see she was identified, but her case is still shrouded in so much mystery, and her parents passed away a long time ago and died never knowing where their daughter went? Did they wonder? Did they look for her? I am not 100% sure about the reporting system in the States, being European, although I obsessively lurk websleuths. Rest in peace sweet Sandy, you were finally given a name.
 

Taken from the article

"Andy and Irene have both since passed away, without ever knowing what happened to their daughter. Now law enforcement needs your help. They’re looking for anyone who interacted with Sandy Morden or her parents, Andy and Irene, after 1970…friends, acquaintances, neighbors, co-workers, classmates, etc.

With Sandy’s identification, the case is really just beginning. Her death is being investigated as a homicide.

“There are so many other questions,” said Schultz. “How did she get there? Why did she get there?"


There still must be people around who knew her.....
 
It was a no brainer how she got there, she probably was going to run away to her mother, I bet she felt very neglected and saw the newspaper from her mother. I would’ve hoped she made it to her mother, but it was probably the opposite, she hitchhiked and got a ride with the wrong person.
 
Yeah the most likely scenario is she was hitchhiking to her mom and instead met a serial killer. The killer didn't want her to be found, it seems, which points to a degree of sophistication, and being well-experience at killing women.
 
Yeah the most likely scenario is she was hitchhiking to her mom and instead met a serial killer. The killer didn't want her to be found, it seems, which points to a degree of sophistication, and being well-experience at killing women.
I wonder who would have been around at that time. So far we can mark off Warren Forrest and Ted Bundy from the list. But to me, Green River Killer Gary Ridgeway still seems plausible to me. But who else could have been around?
 
Cold case gets new life thanks to dna evidence

75653265_2517194845226050_5120514221368410112_n.jpg
safe_image.php

(Sandy Morden with her dad)

The sheriff’s cold case unit is asking for any information the public may have on Andrew Bain Morden, Sandy Morden’s father, who died on July 27, 1999, in Ilwaco.
---
Sandy Morden’s parents were Andrew Bain Morden and Kathryn Irene Morden, and the family came from the San Francisco Bay area.

The family moved to Portland, Oregon where Andrew worked in the maritime trade on tugboats servicing pulp, paper and logging interests on the Willamette and Columbia Rivers. The couple divorced in the early 1970s and Andrew got custody of Sandy.

Kathryn Irene Morden lived separately from her daughter for the remainder of their lives and died in 1988.

Andrew and Sandy lived in Portland, Oregon and Vancouver, Washington, where Sandy went to school and Andrew worked as an inland boatman for mills operated by Crown Zellerbach, James River and Weyerhaeuser. Sandy disappeared sometime after May 1977. Andrew was never able to locate her. He retired from the maritime trades and moved to Ilwaco. He was a Marine Corps veteran of the Korean War era and was a member of the VFW of Chinook and was active in the Oddfellows Lodge of Ilwaco
---
Clark County Sheriff’s detectives would like to hear from friends, acquaintances, neighbors, coworkers and fellow veterans of Andy, particularly those who interacted with him after 1970.

Cold case gets new life thanks to DNA evidence
 
It’s quiet possible that someone, maybe a coworker of Andy’s or other sailors, became familiar with his work hours and schedule. This would allow ample opportunity to groom her or convince her to leave the area. It is quite possible as the mother was so transient, she had no phone number. If a note was left, it might have taken awhile to contact her. There might have been more dynamics, because at the time, mothers typically always got custody of the children. I think the father did the best her could do at the time as did the mom. Perhaps she was reported as missing, dismissed as a runway, or aged out. We do not know.
 
Last edited:
Help ID Me Facebook post 10/29/2019. Lots of comments.

Help ID Me

#IDENTIFIED

On February 24, 1980 skeletal remains of an unidentified female were recovered along Fly Creek near #Amboy, #Washington in rural Clark County.

Today the Clark County Sheriff's Office is announcing the remains have been positively identified as Sandra Renee ("Sandy") Morden.

In January the case was submitted to Parabon for phenotyping and genetic genealogy. The Jane Doe's data was uploaded into a public genetic genealogy database and potential relatives were identified. Additional follow-up by law enforcement confirmed the remains were in fact those of Sandy Morden.

Sandy, her father Andrew Bain ("Andy") Morden and her mother Kathryn Irene ("Irene") Morden moved to Portland from the San Francisco Bay area. Andy, who was a Marine Corps veteran of the Korean War era, worked in the maritime trades on tugboats providing service to pulp, paper and logging interests on the Willamette and Columbia Rivers.

Andy and Irene were divorced in the early 1970s, with Andy assuming custody of Sandy. Following the divorce, Irene lived separately at various locations in Portland and in the Bay area. Andy and Sandy lived in Portland and Vancouver.

Sandy attended Binnesmead Middle School (now Harrison Park Middle School) on S.E. 87th Avenue in Portland in 1974 and 1975. She attended Gaiser Middle School on N.E. 99th Street in Vancouver in 1975 and 1976. She attended Wilson High School on S.W. Vermont Street in Portland in 1976 and 1977.

Irene passed away in San Francisco in 1988. Andy Morden retired to Ilwaco, Washington, where he died in 1999.

Sandy’s whereabouts between May 1977 and February 1980 have yet to be determined.

The Sheriff's Office would like to hear from friends, acquaintances, neighbors, coworkers, fellow veterans and classmates of Andy, Irene and Sandy Morden, particularly those who interacted with them after 1970. Persons with any information are urged to contact Detective Lindsay Schultz Lindsay.Schultz@clark.wa.gov or 360.397.2036
 

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