John W. Linley, is among the most revered architectural historians of Georgia. A graduate of Clemson College and Princeton University, he was a modernist architect in Anderson, South Carolina before joining the faculty of The University of Georgia in 1963. This thesis explores his life and career. Through archival research and interviews, John Linley’s work as an author, professor, urbanist and preservationist on the historic preservation movement as it was unfolding in Georgia in the 1960’s and 70’s is revealed, articulated and discussed.