Whitehall was a brand from David Wexler & Co, a company which started in 1920 as a musical instrument distributor in Chicago. According to the US Trademark office, the first use of the Whitehall brand name was in 1946, Wexler applied for the formal trademark in 1959.
By 1965 the Wexler catalog had the Whitehall brand of drums. The early drums in the Wexler catalog were American made by Kent, but as time passed they were all made by Pearl.
If there was ever a drum wrap that was associated with a stencil brand it would be the Tiger Eye wrap on a Whitehall kit. Tiger’s Eye Pearl is the official name according to Pearl, who most used this wrap, but variations of the wrap can be found on Hoshino, Sakae, and Star made drums as well.
Unlike most stencil brands Whitehall offered much more variety in drum sizes. Most brands were limited to 20” and 22” bass drums, 12” and 13” tom toms, and 14” or 16” floor toms. Whitehall went all out with bass drums offering 18”, 20”, 22” and 24”. If you were willing to use a marching bass drum they were offered in 26” and 28”. For toms they also pushed the norm with 12”, 13”, and 14”. Floor toms were offered in 14”, 16”, and 18”.
Each year they would offer about seven different outfit packages that would cater to most styles of music, even a double bass drum kit. Most Whitehall drums seem to have the Slingerland style lugs but also did have some with the Battleship lugs and even more rare, the Casket lugs.
Wexler took advantage to their relationship with Pearl by also offering some of the more experimental drums from Pearl’s research & development department, like the Bul-Gee snare drum and acrylic “Crystal” drums.
This is the cover of the 1973 catalog with the “Crystal” model of drums.
Wexler being based in Chicago gave them many opportunities to have their drums in the hands of popular local musicians to help endorse their drums. One such musician was drummer, band leader, and entertainer Tony Smith. With his band The Aristocrats, Tony was definitely a local favorite and recorded a live album putting his Whitehall drums proudly on the front cover. This is the only album I have ever seen with stencil branded drums on the cover.
Apparently 1975 was the last year for the Whitehall Drums catalog and the drums were eventually phased out of Wexler. At a later point, possibly in the 90’s The Whitehall Drums were brought back, this time they were made by another company in either Taiwan or China. These drums were also phased out with their percussion instruments.
In 1977 Wexler evolved into a Manufacturer’s Representative organization under the name “Wexler Music Co.”. In 1999 they moved to Scottsdale, Arizona and today deals in school band accessories, but nothing drum related. Wexler should be remembered as one of the great pioneering companies that brought countless affordable musical instruments (including our beloved Japanese drums) and put them in the hands of kids and professionals alike. The Whitehall name should be remembered as one of the flagships of a great company and one of the biggest stencil brands of the era.
Special thanks to: David Wexler & Co. (and Loretta) for your contributions.