Browne was an original thinker and his major contribution to geological ideas was probably in the recognition of the variation in the types of granitic intrusions, what he called "synchronous" and "subsequent", in relation to the folding of the surrounding rocks.
Browne however was no airy academic. He made considerable contributions to engineering geology, with his work on the Hume and Warragamba Dam sites and the Gladesville Bridge.
Following retirement Browne, accompanied by his wife Ida, devoted considerable time to Tertiary and Quaternary geology, studying the silcrete ("grey billy") of the Southern Highlands and the glacial landforms of the Kosciusko region. He was also very involved in publicising the need to conserve the high country, and defended his ideas against fierce criticism, ultimately achieving the reservation of a "primitive area".
Browne's sense of humour was well disguised by a rather solemn delivery, which he used to effect in lectures and in the field, where he was a prodigious walker, observer and instructor.
W.R. (as he was invariably known) was one of the originators of the Geological Society of Australia in the early 1950s, and President of the Society, 1955-6. The W.R. Browne Medal is the Society's highest honour.
Written by David Branagan