- Conceal/Reveal Line
- Home Theatre
- AIA Continuing Ed
- Environmental Info
- Subscribe to Updates
- Press Room
- Catalogs
Draper History
Draper has been manufacturing quality
products since 1902.
Draper Inc. is headquartered in Spiceland, Indiana, a village of 800 people located 40 miles east of Indianapolis, Indiana.
- The company was founded by Luther O. Draper in 1902 to manufacture window shades for schools, and that was Draper's primary product for the next 60 years.
- In 1918 Mr. Draper was joined by his son-in-law, Elmer Pidgeon. Mr. Draper later became a prominent state politician and Elmer Pidgeon assumed management of the company in 1938.
- Elmer Pidgeon's son, Luther, joined the firm in 1940 and became its President in 1960. He continued in that capacity until his death in July 2004.
- In 1957 Luther Pidgeon secured a patent on an inexpensive classroom projection screen, marking Draper's entry into the screen business. Today, projection screens and related products are the largest component of Draper’s business.
- Draper manufactured products closely related to projection screens include rear projection display systems, video projector mounts and lifts, plasma display mounts and lifts, and presentation easels.
- In 1989 Draper introduced FlexShade Systems, a second line of window shades designed for the commercial market. In 1994 Draper entered the gymnasium equipment market.
- Today, the company's gymnasium equipment products include basketball backstops, gym dividers, wall pads, volleyball equipment, batting cages and wrestling mat hoists.
- In addition to its Spiceland, Indiana headquarters, Draper, Inc. has sales offices in Placentia, CA and in Blackwood, Gwent, United Kingdom. Draper also has three wholly owned subsidiaries: Draper Group Ltd., a sales and warehouse facility in Corby, Northamptonshire, United Kingdom, and two manufacturing companies in Sweden: Draper Europe AB, a leading European projection screen manufacturer, and SMS Smart Media Solutions AB, a leading European provider of video projector and flat screen mounts.
- The company is owned and managed by the descendants of Luther O. Draper and has enjoyed steady growth for the past 108 years.
- Draper products are shipped to dealers throughout the United States and more than 100 foreign countries.