Sir Thomas Matthews (8 August 1849 – 13 January 1930) was a British civil engineer, who was a notable builder of lighthouses.

From 1868 to 1871 he assisted his father in providing drinking water for Penzance and the sea and harbour defences.

In 1874, he entered the employment of the United Kingdom's lighthouse service, Trinity House, as an assistant engineer.

He also worked on illumination systems, notably a lamp designed to burn oil vapour.

The work took two years to finish; it involved building a coffer-dam and an aerial ropeway from the cliffs to transport materials.