Missing
Christine Ann Nelson
Christine, approximately 1986
Date and time person was reported missing : 08/24/1986
Missing location (approx) :
Eugene, Oregon
Missing classification : Endangered Missing
Gender : Female
Ethnicity :
White
DOB : 12/14/1949 (71)
Age at the time of disappearance: 36 years old
Height / Weight : 5'10, 150 pounds
Description, clothing, jewerly and more : A striped shirt, a black leather jacket, gray pants, two-tone black Nike sneakers, and a gold-colored helmet.
Distinguishing characteristics, birthmarks, tattoos
: Caucasian female. Blonde hair, blue eyes. Christine has scars on her right knee, chin, and near her right eye. She has a mole on her chin and a dimple on her right cheek. She wears wire-framed eyeglasses.
Information on the case from local sources, may or may not be correct : Christine was reportedly last seen driving a 1973 Honda 500 motorcycle with Oregon license plates in Eugene, Oregon on August 24, 1986. She and her husband, Philip Stephen Nelson, had traveled to Carson City, Nevada the previous day and picked up two Studebaker cars.
Philip says they went home together afterwards, and Christine drove off on her motorcycle early the next morning and never returned. She has never been heard from again.
Authorities have no evidence besides Philip's statements that Christine ever made it home from Carson City. She is known to have arrived in Nevada safely, but no one besides Philip reported seeing her back home in Oregon.
Christine's motorcycle was found shortly after her disappearance, parked at a rock quarry on Sears Road in CottAge at the time of disappearance: Grove, Oregon. The location is about 15 miles from the Nelson home and not far from the highway.
Philip stated he believed his wife had run away with another man, and some of Christine's relatives concurred, but other members of her family thought she had disappeared under suspicious circumstances and may have been murdered.
Christine's coworkers stated she often had bruises on her body and had told them Philip abused her, but he was never charged in connection with any domestic violence incidents.
Their marriAge at the time of disappearance: was troubled and the couple separated a few months prior to Christine's disappearance. She moved back in with her parents, but Philip begged to her to reconcile and she began spending weekends with him at their house. By the time of her disappearance, Christine was still undecided as to whether to end her marriAge at the time of disappearance: .
Philip was initially cooperative with the police investigating his wife's case, but he eventually refused to take a polygraph, hired an attorney and stopped talking to authorities.
After Christine's disappearance, her mother had her declared legally dead and sued Philip, claiming he had killed his wife, hidden her body and then moved to Alaska to avoid being prosecuted. Oregon law states that a murderer cannot benefit from their victim's estate.
The lawsuit was dropped after Philip agreed to withdraw all claims to Christine's estate, including her retirement and insurance benefits. He has never been charged in her disappearance.
Christine was employed as a secretary for the University of Oregon at the time of her disappearance. She is described as an extremely outgoing and athletic person; she enjoys swimming, wind-surfing, baseball and horseback riding. Most of her relatives are now deceased.
Foul play is suspected in her case, which remains unsolved.
Other information and links : ncy
Lane County Sheriff's Department
541-682-4141
541-682-4167
September 2021 updates and sources
Interactive Missing Person Search Map
