[1][2][3][4] Thomas was born in Aberystwyth, Ceredigion (Cardiganshire), Wales, to Welsh parents:[5] his father was a John Thomas of Shrewsbury;[6] and his mother was Elizabeth, née Williams[4] (daughter of Edward Williams, of Llwynyrhedydd).
[7] He was educated at Oswestry School,[7] Shrewsbury[8] and Trinity College, Cambridge, where he graduated B.A.
[6] Ordained in 1840,[9] he was a Curate at Bishop Ryder Church, Birmingham[10] before holding incumbencies at Tuddenham[11] and Attleborough.
[12] In 1851 he became Secretary of the Colonial Church and School Society,[13] a post he held for twelve years until his consecration as the inaugural Bishop of Goulburn in 1863.
[7] Thomas died at Bishopthorpe Manor[20] in Goulburn, New South Wales, Australia on 15 March 1892 aged 75.