Quad Cities WWII Paratrooper Honored With Memorial Exhibit At Rock Island Arsenal Museum

Local Hero Crashed Through Greenhouse Roof During D-Day Invasion

Henry Langrehr from the Quad Cities is being honored with a memorial exhibit at the Rock Island Arsenal Museum. The exhibit features about a dozen personal items from his World War II service. These items were donated by his family after his death in April 2025.

Langrehr was only 19 years old when he jumped from a plane over France during the war. The plane lost a wing and he crashed through the glass roof of a greenhouse. He survived the crash but was captured by the German Army and sent to work at a prison camp. He eventually escaped and found an American unit two weeks later. He was still wearing his torn and dingy D-Day uniform almost a year after his capture.

Family Donates Uniform And Personal Effects

The Rock Island Arsenal Museum is displaying his uniform, dog tags, and a picture of his wife that he carried with him during the war. These personal effects were held close by Langrehr throughout his service and upon returning home.

Maj. Kevin Braafladt serves as First Army public affairs director and command historian. He stated that the exhibit is a memorial to Henry that displays a collection of his personal effects. Langrehr is from Clinton Island which is about 45 minutes away from the arsenal. His family still lives in the area. Maj. Braafladt described him as one of their local heroes.

First Army Gives Recognition To Unsung Veteran

First Army is the oldest and longest-established field of the U.S. Army. It is responsible for training, readiness, and mobilization of Army Reserve and National Guard units. First Army is sponsoring the Henry Langrehr exhibit which will run throughout the summer.

The exhibit displays items that were donated by his family. Maj. Braafladt said First Army is giving him recognition that he never really sought for himself. He added that they are honored to be able to show that they will not forget him. First Army veterans say that they stand on the shoulders of giants. But what they really mean is all of their veterans. Without those veterans, they would not be where they are today.

Remembered As Greenhouse Glass Crasher

Langrehr died in April 2025 at the age of 100. He was a WWII veteran and paratrooper who was recognized at First Army. At age 99 he returned to Normandy for the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings. He was able to retrace his steps back to the greenhouse he crashed through in June 1944. Along with his fellow veterans he was hailed a hero in a Veterans parade through the streets.

Maj. Braafladt noted that Langrehs story is just a slice of what all of their veterans who served have gone through. He saw some incredible hardships including being wounded and surviving the horrors of being a prisoner of war. Yet he came home and integrated himself back into the community as a quiet and humble family man.

Hometown Hero With Storied Military Career

After the war Langrehr returned to Clinton where he became a successful small business owner. He married his hometown sweetheart and raised a family. His son served two tours in Vietnam. His grandsons eventually served in the very same 82nd Airborne unit that Langrehr was with on D-Day.

Langrehr was a dear friend to First Army and the Rock Island Arsenal. He was a consistent presence at promotions and retirements. He spent the 75th anniversary of D-Day visiting his former unit.

Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks from Iowa released a statement upon Langrehrs death last year. She recalled his emotional greenhouse visit in Normandy. As he gazed at the greenhouse that afternoon he had said simply. I just wanted to see it one more time. Ive seen it in my mindseye my entire adult life. There was not a dry eye among anyone who witnessed it.

The exhibit will run throughout the summer at the Rock Island Arsenal Museum in Rock Island. It honors a local hero who never sought recognition for his incredible wartime service and survival.