Items on Display

Keystone Radioptican

A picture was placed in the back of this photograph projector and was projected on a wall or screen. Illumination was made by the light of two kerosene wicks that were vented through the two chimneys on top. J. Russell Morse, a missionary to China, Burma, and Tibet, used one of these as early as 1933. This model was converted to electricity sometime later.

J. Russell Morse describes using the kerosene projector in Asia, "Many of these people had never seen a white person before. None was expecting him and none wanted him. The first hearings were gained with the aid of the 'wonderful American light,' an ordinary kerosene lantern and eighteen slides of the life of Christ. So, the gospel was preached in this region for the first time, May 1930."

Keystone Eye Comfort Stereoscope

These were used to view pictures on cards. The Keystone View Company was founded in 1892. Model 40 belonged to Helen Nutt’s grandfather.

Webcor Wire Player/Recorder

This working model of a wire recorder predated videotape machines. This model is similar to the tabletop model seen in the picture used by Ziden as early as 1952 to record and take church services to those who could not attend church.

Royal Typewriter with 18" Carriage

Ziden used this in early ministries beginning at Mt. Pleasant Christian Church in 1956. When his family went to Africa, his mother Crystal Fern Nutt used it to produce “The Lamplighter.” This was the newsletter from Ziden and Helen when Good News Productions was started in Rhodesia. The 18” carriage allowed the making of stencils, including horizontal formats to be used on the Gestetner 120 Mimeograph machine (pictured below) to print out the first GNPI letters.

Thai Missionary David Morse used a typewriter similar to this one to solder the typewriter keys with a new font to help share the gospel through Lisu films.

Gestetner 120 Mimeograph

This machine was used to print out the first GNPI letters.

Bolex 16mm Camera

Both cameras were used in the early days of Good News Productions in Rhodesia. Missionary coworker Jack Pennington gathered scenes with the one with the zoom lens on the tripod. Ziden used the one with the turret lens.

Polaroid J66 Land Camera

This belonged to Tom Nutt’s father-in-law. Several missionaries used cameras like it in Rhodesia. They amazed people, but most stopped using them because they were seen as similar to black magic.

Polaroid Model 150

The Land cameras were named after Edwin Land, the American scientist and founder of Polaroid who invented the self-developing photography process. This is a 1967 Model which belonged to Jack Pennington, a missionary coworker of Ziden.

Large Camera on Tripod

ENG (Electronic News Gathering) was done with 16mm cameras before video cameras. Even after video cameras were available, many still used 16mm because of better quality. This particular camera belonged to a local ENG reporter (John Holmes). It was used to film John F. Kennedy when he visited Joplin during his 1961 presidential campaign. GNPI transferred that footage to DVD. Click here to see the footage.

Honeywell Repronar

This was used to make the first filmstrips in Rhodesia beginning in 1969. It was used to produce filmstrips until the move was made to Joplin when it was replaced with a Sickles 4200 camera.

Viewlex Filmstrip/Slide Projector

This was used by GNPI in the early days to show programs in local churches and view filmstrips that were produced for use overseas.

Minette Viewer

Ziden used this 16mm version to produce 16mm films in the early days of Good News Productions in Rhodesia.

Rolleiflex Camera

Ziden used this in Rhodesia as a studio camera.

8mm Film Projector

Jim and Marge Taylor who managed the Good News Resource Center in Africa from 1973 to 1974 used this projector when Ziden and Helen returned to the US and ultimately started GNPI.

Camera in its Case

Ziden used this case for many years to carry photographic equipment for making filmstrips and projects.

IBM Selectric II Typewriter

This was one of the first memory typewriters with changeable fonts on a ball. This one was purchased in 1976 when GNPI opened in Joplin.

Toy Vehicle

A church in Minnesota used this car as a visual aid to raise funds for two mobile units in Africa.

Elliptical Waveguide

This conduit, calibrated to a certain frequency, allows RF waves to be sent in a controlled direction. This particular waveguide has funneled thousands of hours of Christ-centered media to a satellite some 22,400 miles away and back down to earth. The satellite system was also used to help multiple news networks, which included “Nightline” with Ted Coppel, “Good Morning America,” and “America's Most Wanted.”

Earth Station

Tom Nutt made this replica of the GNPI Trumpet One Earth Station and gave it to Ziden for Father’s Day. It was made from scrap metal on the Crain farm.

Uplinker of the Year Award

The ATT Satellite System started the Uplinker of the Year Award program. GNPI was the only group that received that award 10 years in a row.

Communion Service Video

GNPI created a video of people taking the Lord’s Supper around the world that was shown during a combined communion service of the Missionary Convention and the North American Christian Convention in Indianapolis with 43,000 present. Click here to watch the video.

TapeTalk Cassette Tape Player

In the early days of GNPI, hand-crank tape players were used to listen to the word of God, especially in Thailand and Burma.

Simple Technology Tools

Raspberry Pi, a device capable of using Wi-Fi in the middle of a busy market, or a pen with a USB port are examples of tools operated by battery or electricity to take Christian resources into remote locations.

Phones

Early phones were party lines. This technology eventually led to wireless communication.

Projector Used in Madagascar

Fernando Basso, a Christian worker in Madagascar, used this projector to help reach his goal of sharing the gospel in the 500 Bara villages. Click here to watch the video of Fernando's Story.

Solar Kit

As of 2024, GNPI has assembled and sent out nearly 900 Solar Kits in 50 countries.

"The True God" Booklet

The GNPI-SE Asia team created this tool to help people in their Buddhist culture see that Jesus is the one true God.

Elephant Foot

This front foot was from an elephant harvested for meat to feed African people on June 29, 1972. Boned-out elephant feet were commonly used for umbrella holders, cane holders, or wastebasket.

Ten Canes from Ziden's Collection

1. The colorful Mexico cane is a gift from Ziden’s daughter Karolyn Schrage.
2. The elephant top cane came from workers in Africa.
3. The cane with the white inlaid cross, made of cow bone, was presented to Ziden by Michael Nyandoro, a coworker and friend, when the Nutt family returned to the US.
4. Tonga Walking Stick: Jack and Peggy Pennington presented this cane to Ziden and Helen in appreciation for their partnership in the gospel.
   This special gift detailed the life of a Tonga warrior in the Zambezi Valley.
5. The cane with many pieces of inlaid bone was a gift from David Lall.
6. The brass top cane was a gift from Jay and Romola Henry in India.
7. The plain wooden cane belonged to J. Willis who served as dean of the Manila Bible Seminary in the Philippines in 1940. This cane is the last one he used before his death on December 4, 1991.
8. The cane of skin is made from an elephant tail from Kenya.
9. The white cane was a special gift from Jay and Romola Henry in India at the dedication of the Mark Memorial Chapel.
10. The dark elephant cane was a gift from India by David Lall.