Thomas Verner was the last Sovereign of Belfast, the term used for the position of Mayor before 1842. He held the position of Sovereign for the years 1841 and 1842, before being elected as Mayor in 1855.

He was Captain of the Antrim Militia, the military reserve forces. Captain Thomas Verner was employed as an agent to the Marquis of Donegal. In public life Verner also served as Justice of the Peace and Deputy-Lieutenant of County Antrim.

The Verner family originated from County Armagh. Captain Thomas Verner was the third son of Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas Verner of Churchill, Co, Armagh. His father had also served as Sovereign of Belfast earlier in the century.

He died at Pau, France, on 9 August 1870.