Thomas Beamish Akins (February 1, 1809 – May 6, 1891) was a Canadian lawyer, historian, archivist, and author who was appointed Nova Scotia's first Commissioner of Public Records from 1857 until his death in 1891.

Akins' father was a descendant of the original New England Planters of Falmouth, Nova Scotia settled in 1761; his mother was the daughter of Halifax merchant Thomas Beamish of Port Warden, Nova Scotia.

Among his published works were his History of Halifax and A Sketch of the Rise and Progress of the Church of England in the British North American Provinces (Halifax, 1849), A Brief Account of the Origin, Endowment and Progress of the University of King’s College, Windsor, Nova Scotia (Halifax, 1865), and an article, "The First Council," in the Collections of the Nova Scotia Historical Society for 1879–80.

He served as president of the Nova Scotia Historical Society from 1882–83 and was at the time of his death one of its vice-presidents.

Akins' house from 1858 to 1891, located in Halifax, was designated a National Historic Site of Canada.