The Disappearance of Merrian Carver (2004) – Cruise Ship Disappearance

In August 2004, 40-year-old Merrian Carver vanished from a Celebrity Cruise ship traveling from Seattle to Alaska. She was last seen the next day—and then she disappeared without explanation. For a week, no one reported her missing. Her belongings were given away, her absence ignored, and her family left in the dark until they began their own search for answers. Like the disappearance of Amy Lynn Bradley, Merrian’s case is more than a mystery at sea. It exposed the cruise industry’s troubling lack of accountability and sparked a fight for justice led by her father, Kendall Carver. His relentless advocacy brought international attention to missing persons on cruise ships and pushed for landmark changes in maritime law. In this episode of She Goes By Jane, we look at Merrian’s life, her disappearance, the failures that followed, and the legacy of a family who refused to let her be forgotten. ✨ She Goes By Jane is a true crime podcast about missing and unidentified women. We share the stories of women who vanish—no gore, no sensationalism, just careful, compassionate storytelling. ➡️ Share Merrian’s story to help keep attention on women who are still missing. 📍 Find us on Instagram & Facebook. 📚 Get Aimee’s book, Doe, now available via University of Akron Press, Bookshop.org, and Amazon. 📰 For more women-centered true crime content, subscribe to Aimee’s newsletter, GIRLHUNT.