ALBERT F. FURSTNOW. Probably no business man in Miles City has brought the name of that city before a greater number of people than has Albert F. Furstnow, more intimately known, perhaps, as "Al," whose saddles and horse furnishings are well known all over the world, he having been engaged to fit out expeditions of various kinds, and in every instance demonstrating the superior quality of his product. Mr. Furstnow is one of the most progressive and enterprising citizens of Miles City, one who has prospered in business and has earned success by his natural ability, sagacity and well-established reputation for integrity and honorable dealing. He was born in Fond du Lac, Fond du Lac county, Wisconsin, February 22, 1862

Albert F. Furstnow was educated in the public schools of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, and there learned the trade of a saddler with his father, with whom he continued until 1887. In that year he went to St. Paul, Minnesota, where he continued to work at his trade for about a year, and then traveled on to Cheyenne, Wyoming, where he entered the employ of G. H. and J. S. Collins and was eventually promoted to the position of foreman of their business establishment.

In 1884 he first came to Miles City, Montana, to enter the employ of E. Gottlich, with whom he continued for some time, and here he made the first fine flower-stamped saddle manufactured in Miles City, for Lord Sidney Padgett and Leight Remington, of the Remington Arms Company. Discontinuing his connection with the Gottlich establishment, Mr. Furstnow re-entered the service of G. H. and J. S. Collins, becoming foreman of their shops at Omaha, Nebraska, and while in their employ outfitted Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show for the Paris Exposition. After spending another year at Cheyenne, Mr. Furstnow went to San Francisco, but in 1892 returned to Miles City, and until 1894 was connected with the Robbins & Lenoir Saddle Company. That year marked his venturing into business [sic] on his own responsibility, in which he has since continued. He is the designer and manufacturer of the original Al Furstnow Saddles, which are known for their excellence and beauty in this and other cou!
ntries. He has stock saddles to order and carries a full line of up-to-date horse furnishings of every variety. His large and perfectly equipped establishment is located in his own building at No. 506-08 Main street. This fine two-story double brick building he built for his own use in the business. It is one of the fine buildings of the city, and has a solid plate glass front for show purposes, and in his windows is displayed the finest exhibition of saddlery, harness and leather trappings that will be found in the state of Montana. His products, especially the Al Furstnow saddles, are used throughout the civilized world, especially in the western states and in old Mexico, and many shipments go to foreign countries, their export trade being particularly heavy. Mr. Furstnow also carries a complete stock of imported bags of all kinds, and in his stock may be found the latest designs in wardrobe trunks. No city in the United States has a better or more costly assortment!
of leather goods of every description, and his display of these goods would do credit to any establishment of the kind in the country. The building is equipped with the latest machinery and appurtenances known to the trade, and they are in every way prepared to turn out the finest of work. Mr. Furstnow employs none but the most skilled artisans, and this fact, combined with the excellence of the raw material used in his shops, assures the purchasers of the best possible products.

Excerpts from A History of Montana