No image of the professional man in the United States in 1951 would be complete without the ubiquitous briefcase. Little Falls City Attorney, Charles A. Fortier, purchased this beautifully decorated hand-tooled leather briefcase during a family vacation in Tijuana, Mexico, in 1951. Charles Alexander Fortier was born in Little Falls, Minnesota, on January 17, 1901, to G.M.A. Fortier I and Petronilla Rosa (Vasaly) Fortier. G.M.A. was a leading physician and surgeon in Little Falls. Charles became an attorney in 1927 and four years later was appointed city attorney for Little Falls, a position which he held for over twenty years. Fortier’s professional career included one term as mayor of Little Falls and a fifteen-year stint as a probate and juvenile judge. Fortier married Margaret Steffes (1901-1986) in Little Falls on August 8, 1932. Margaret and Charles had two children, Natalie and Jeanne. Fortier retired as probate judge in 1971 and died in Little Falls on October 10, 1976.