 In 1934 the wealthy socialite, bird-watching enthusiast, and conservationist Rosalie Edge leased (with an option to buy) to establish Hawk Mountain Sanctuary and hired Maurice and Irma Broun as game wardens to exclude hunters.The land (in Eastern Pennsylvania) was purchased.With the exception of three years from 1942 to 1945 when he was a photographer with the Seabees in the South Pacific, Maurice Broun worked as a curator of Hawk Mountain Sanctuary from 1934 until his retirement in 1966.