He was the part of the prominent Browne family of Salem, and through his mother's side, he was descended from four colonial governors, including John Winthrop.
Browne was forced out of office during the American Revolution, in part for refusing to reject the heightened salary granted to judges by the Crown.
He was also appointed a mandamus councilor to Governor Gage, a post he refused to resign, earning him widespread dislike in Massachusetts.
[5] Arriving in Bermuda in 1782, he immediately took steps to improve the island's defenses and raising militia companies heavily populated with exiled Loyalists.
Following American independence, he sought to establish trade with the United States and make Bermuda a free port.
He would leave Bermuda in better shape than he found it, having established commerce with the new United States that would ensure the islands economic sustainability.