He was born in County Cavan, Ireland, to Mathew Lough and Martha Steel, and was educated at The Royal School in Cavan Town and at Wesleyan Connexional School, Dublin.
Thomas along with his younger brother Arthur Steel Lough were pioneers of the Drummully Agricultural Co-operative & Dairy Society in 1896, later to become Killeshandra Co-operative Agricultural Dairy Society and progressed to become one of Ireland's leading dairy companies, now internationally known as Lakeland Dairies.