WHO WE ARE

A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE TRAVEL GROUPROLL IN OUR COMMUNITY AND IT’S PRINCIPALS

It all started in 1948 with our founder, Bernard “Bud” Dober, a true pioneer in the retail travel industry in Connecticut and New England. His first location was in the historic Arcade in downtown Bridgeport almost opposite the Barnum Museum, thus the name Barnum Travel. Bud would tell stories of booking clients on the original Queen Mary or ticketing clients for European flights on Pan Am and TWA when the new modern DC-3 was all the buzz in the infancy of the retail travel industry, or how he would escort clients on trips to St. Andrews to play golf. He had a million stories to tell and he loved his vocation until the day he left us for a better place.

Barnum Travel was renamed The Travel Group in 1990 to reflect the acquisitions that started in 1988 when Glenn and Sandy Ward, then owners of All-Ways Travel, bought Barnum and Greenfield Hill Travel, and later buying Imperial Travel, Kingsway Travel and incorporating Continental Travel into one entity.

It is interesting to note the following: Barnum started in 1948; All-Ways in 1968 May Strader and Marie Keller Owners; Imperial in 1969 John Duncan Owner; Greenfield Hill in 1978 Sheila Madow Owner; Continental in 1989 Maria Mathe Owner; Kingsway in 1990 Barbara Crisanti Owner. All of the above agency owners, with the exception of Barbara Crisanti and Maria Mathe started their respective careers working for Bud Dober at the original Barnum Travel. However, Maria Mathe began her career working for John Duncan of Imperial Travel.

As I look back now, as President of The Travel Group, I can’t help but reflect on the history and longevity of these owners over those many decades, the changes they saw, the experiences they had, the professionalism they brought to our industry and how they served our communities. Collectively, the above mentioned represent 227 years of experience that have been passed down to the current generation of The Travel Group and why, 66 years later, we are still here to serve our community and fellow travelers with passion and commitment.

Glenn Ward President

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