Plaque Dedicated To Lost Oregon Boy

Plaque dedicated

to lost Oregon boy

CHEMULT, Ore.

The family and friends of Nathan Madsen have dedicated a commemorative plaque to the 9-year-old who vanished last fall in the rugged canyon country of south-central Oregon.

About 75 people were present Friday as Jerry and Sarah Madsen hung the wooden plaque at the spot where they last saw their son, near the edge of the Mount Thielsen Wilderness in north Klamath County.

``This way leads to Nathan Madsen,'' the plaque reads. ``Born July 24, 1980, lost Oct. 22, 1989. Thanks to all the friends who assisted in the search.''

Nathan disappeared during a family cattle roundup after turning his pony back to camp in the cold, stormy weather. When other members of the roundup party returned to camp several hours later, the boy was nowhere to be found.

An intensive two-week search involving hundreds of volunteers turned up no trace of the boy. After four weeks, Nathan's pony was found wandering high above the canyon. But a second search for the boy also proved fruitless. The search was suspended when the snows arrived in mid-December.

Volunteers plan to resume the search as soon as the latest snow melts. Although they hold little hope of finding Nathan alive, they hope to find his remains and perhaps some clues to his disappearance.