High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Tom Thumb is a character of English folklore. The History of Tom Thumb was published in 1621, and has the distinction of being the first fairy tale printed in English. Tom is no bigger than his father`s thumb, and his adventures include being swallowed by a cow, tangling with giants, and becoming a favourite of King Arthur. The earliest allusions to Tom occur in various 16th century works such as Reginald Scot`s Discovery of Witchcraft (1584) where Tom is cited as one of the supernatural folk employed by servant maids to frighten children.