Witness of the Times

Welcome to Witness of the Times, where we explore the stories behind the headlines of history, the people, places, and moments that shaped our world, often hidden in plain sight. Each week, Dr. Bruce Baker invites you to join him on a journey across time — from the dusty backroads of forgotten towns to the great turning points of civilizations past. Whether we’re unraveling the myths of ancient Rome, tracing the rise of modern demo...

Welcome to Witness of the Times, where we explore the stories behind the headlines of history, the people, places, and moments that shaped our world, often hidden in plain sight. Each week, Dr. Bruce Baker invites you to join him on a journey across time — from the dusty backroads of forgotten towns to the great turning points of civilizations past. Whether we’re unraveling the myths of ancient Rome, tracing the rise of modern demo...

Welcome to Witness of the Times, where we explore the stories behind the headlines of history, the people, places, and moments that shaped our world, often hidden in plain sight. Each week, Dr. Bruce Baker invites you to join him on a journey across time — from the dusty backroads of forgotten towns to the great turning points of civilizations past. Whether we’re unraveling the myths of ancient Rome, tracing the rise of modern demo...

Welcome to Witness of the Times, where we explore the stories behind the headlines of history, the people, places, and moments that shaped our world, often hidden in plain sight. Each week, Dr. Bruce Baker invites you to join him on a journey across time — from the dusty backroads of forgotten towns to the great turning points of civilizations past. Whether we’re unraveling the myths of ancient Rome, tracing the rise of modern demo...

Welcome to Witness of the Times, where we explore the stories behind the headlines of history, the people, places, and moments that shaped our world, often hidden in plain sight. Each week, Dr. Bruce Baker invites you to join him on a journey across time — from the dusty backroads of forgotten towns to the great turning points of civilizations past. Whether we’re unraveling the myths of ancient Rome, tracing the rise of modern demo...

Welcome to Witness of the Times, where we explore the stories behind the headlines of history, the people, places, and moments that shaped our world, often hidden in plain sight. Each week, Dr. Bruce Baker invites you to join him on a journey across time — from the dusty backroads of forgotten towns to the great turning points of civilizations past. Whether we’re unraveling the myths of ancient Rome, tracing the rise of modern demo...

Welcome to Witness of the Times, where we explore the stories behind the headlines of history, the people, places, and moments that shaped our world, often hidden in plain sight. Each week, Dr. Bruce Baker invites you to join him on a journey across time — from the dusty backroads of forgotten towns to the great turning points of civilizations past. Whether we’re unraveling the myths of ancient Rome, tracing the rise of modern demo...

In this special wrap-up of Witness of the Times Season Two, Dr. Baker and I reflect on an incredible run of thought-provoking conversations and eye-opening discoveries. From revisiting our favorite episodes to sharing insights we gained along the way; we pull back the curtain on the making of the season. We also offer a sneak peek at the possible directions and topics for Season Three. Welcome to Witnes...

Witness of the Times – Season 2, Episode 12 Title: Breaking Barriers at Surgeons’ Hall: The Edinburgh Seven and the Fight for Women’s Medical Education

As we bring Season 2 of Witness of the Times to a close, we return to a central theme—remarkable women who refused to accept the limits society placed upon them.In our finale, we journey to 19th-century Britain and spotlight ...

In this powerful episode of Witness of the Times, we profile the remarkable true story of Deborah Sampson, a woman whose courage helped reshape American history. Born in 1760 and descended from Mayflower pilgrims, Sampson defied 18th-century gender roles by disguising herself as a man to serve in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. Enlisting under the name Robert Shurtleff, she e...

🎙️ Witness of the Times

Season 2, Witness of the Times, Episode 10 – “The Guard Who Unlocked an Empire: The Story of Mehmet Kusman”

In recent episodes, we've explored the grand civilizations of Babylon, Greece, and Rome. But today, Witness of the Times brings you a story from modern history that is every bit as powerful—and perhaps even more sur...

Season 2, Witness of the Times, Episode 9 – “Alexandria: The Soul of a City”

🎧 Show Notes – Witness of the Times

In this sweeping episode, we explore the rise—and eventual decline—of one of the most remarkable cities in human history: Alexandria, Egypt. Founded in 332 BC by Alexander the Great, Alexandria was built from the ground up with the am...

🎙️ Witness of the Times – Season 2, Episode 8 Title: The Fall of Massalia: When Rome Went to War With Itself

In Episode 8, Dr. Bruce Baker continues our three-part arc on the cities that stood in the way of Rome's domination of the Mediterranean—Mare Nostrum. This week, we turn to Massalia (modern-day Marseille), a proud Greek colony and once-great trading power.

Witness of the Times – Season 2, Episode 7 Title: Carthage Must Be Destroyed: How Rome Claimed the Sea

In this sweeping episode, Dr. Bruce Baker traces the rise and fall of one of the most powerful cities of the ancient world—Carthage. Once a thriving hub of trade, innovation, and naval dominance, Carthage was born from Phoenician roots and flourished as the jewel of the wes...

Witness of the Times – Bonus Episode: Listener Q&A

Welcome to a special bonus episode of Witness of the Times! We're at the halfway point of Season Two, and we wanted to pause and answer a couple of excellent listener questions that came in after Episode 5, which explored the Babylonian origins of timekeeping.

Today, we’ll dig into why Februa...

Season 2, Episode 6 – Why Mesopotamia? The Land Between the Rivers That Built the World

In this episode—the final part of our mini-series on the origins of history—we ask a deceptively simple question: Why did civilization begin in Mesopotamia? Dr. Bruce Baker explores why this region, nestled between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, became the cradle of human advancement. F...

In this episode of Witness of The Times, Dr. Bruce Baker picks up where he left off in Episode 4—exploring the origins of history itself. If writing gave us a way to record our past, it was the Babylonians who gave us the tools to measure when those events occurred. In this fascinating installment, we journey through the development of ancient timekeeping—from shadow clocks and water clocks to the Babyl...

 Season 2,Witness of the Times: Episode 4: When History Began: The Invention of the Past

Hi folk’s Marc here, Welcome back to Witness of the Times. In today’s episode, we’re taking a step back… wayback. Dr. Bruce Baker joins us to unpack a question we rarely stop to ask: What is history? When did it begin, who started keeping it, and what does it really take for something to...

🎙️ Witness of the Times

Season 2, Episode 3 – The Girl Who Ran: Bobby Gibb and the Marathon That Changed Everything

Hi folks, Marc here. In the inspiring conclusion to our three-part series on trailblazing women who defied societal restrictions, Dr. Bruce Baker will explore the groundbreaking story of Roberta “Bobby” Gibb—the first woman to ever...