But in her passing, Browne left both a gift and a challenge for the city of Raleigh, in the form of a small nature park called Hymettus Woods.

Located on Wade Avenue, long before there was such a road, Hymettus was once considered part of the suburbs. It was where, in the early 1900s, Browne's parents conceded their battle to stay ahead of Raleigh's sprawl.

"The entire family loved the woods," said Sarah Woodring, Browne's great-niece, who lived with her aunt in her later years as companion and caretaker. "As they watched development draw closer and closer, they wanted to leave a few trees for city folk to enjoy as much as they did."

In 1969, Browne and her brother donated 4.5 acres of the family land to the national Nature Conservancy. (There was no North Carolina office at the time.)

The conservancy turned the small nature park over to the city of Raleigh for safekeeping and later designated the Triangle Greenways Council to keep a watchful eye on it. If the city were ever to fall down in its duty to protect the park, the greenways council has the authority to reclaim ownership on behalf of the Brownes.

All of which was a bit of a joke among folks who knew Browne well.

Right up until her death at 96, Browne herself was the most dogged watchdog of Hymettus you could imagine.

Oh, she was always gracious. Educated, urbane. She didn't look for a fight. Still, when one came knocking -- as it did -- she could be formidable.

In recent years, many of the trails at the small neighborhood park had become overgrown and impassable. The boundaries weren't marked. And, most offensive to Browne, some neighbors had begun treating the park as extensions of their own back yards.

With the help of City Council member Benson Kirkman, Browne sought a master plan to help restore and protect Hymettus Woods. The neighbors fought the effort.

It took nearly two years, but this past summer, a master plan was finally adopted.

Kirkman had a special copy sent to Browne just last month. He thought it would make her happy.

But Woodring said that although her aunt was pleased that the park's boundaries had been redefined and the neighbors' encroachments removed, she was still very unhappy that the park's upper trail had been closed off, a concession to the neighbors' wishes.

In fact, Browne had been setting up a fund to help pay for the park's upkeep after her death. But when the papers came, Woodring said, her aunt refused to sign them.

"She was so dismayed," Woodring said. "I swear, she was holding on near the end to see if she could still get the master plan changed."

Instead, Hymettus Woods park will be cared for in the future by the city of Raleigh, with help from the greenways council. In Browne's memory, it should be kept up the way she wanted it to be -- a postage stamp of green, dear to Raleigh's heart.

Happy Thanksgiving.

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