Thomas Richmond Boggs was born in Memphis, Tennessee on October 1, 1875. After obtaining his B.Sc from the University of Georgia in 1896, where we was also a graduate student, he worked in the Medical Department at the University of Pennsylvania from 1897-1898 before moving on to the Medical Department of Johns Hopkins University in 1898.

He was one of Sir William Osler's students at Johns Hopkins Medical School and obtained his MD in 1901. He was house officer from 1901-1902. He continued his education by studying at the University of Tubingen in 1903. He was Assistant Resident Physician in 1902-1903 and 1904-1908, and Resident Physician from 1908-1911. He was Student's Medical Advisor, Johns Hopkins Hospital, and Associate in Medicine from 1904-1911. He went on to become Associate Professor of Medicine in 1911 at Johns Hopkins University. In 1911, he also became the Physician in Chief of Baltimore City Hospital at Bay View. He was a member of the Association of American Physicians, the Association for the Advancement of Clinical Investigation, and the American Society of Tropical Medicine. He was also a member of Phi Beta Kappa and Nu Sigma Nu fraternities.