Thomas, a well-known antiquary, was born in Staffordshire in 1734. His reputation, from his papers in the Archaeologia, procured him in 1770 the parliamentary appointment of superintendent of the printing of the ancient records of the kingdom, which occupied him till 1775; when he was made keeper of the records in the Tower. His principal work is the essay on The Origin and Progress of Writing, published in 1784. He died 1st Dec. 1803.