Thomas Washington Talley (October 9, 1868 – July 11, 1952) was a chemistry professor at Fisk University and a collector of African American folk songs.

Talley's first collection, published in 1922, Negro Folk Rhymes (Wise and Otherwise) contained 349 secular folksongs and spirituals.

Additional published works about music by Talley include The Origin of Negro Traditions and A Systematic Chronology of Creation.

[1] The publication of Negro Folk Rhymes marked a turning point in the study of African-American verse.

Talley's book, along with a later collection by Howard Odum and Guy Johnson, called attention to these works.