Thomas G. Burton is an American academic and author with an interest in Appalachian folk culture.
His first degree was a Bachelor of Arts from David Lipscomb College in 1956.
He then received a Master of Arts in 1958 and a PhD in 1966, both from Vanderbilt University.
He became a member of the Department of English of East Tennessee State University in 1958.
Burton's book on snake handling, Taking up Serpents, was described as an authoritative study of the belief by National Geographic magazine.