Simon Fraser (20 May 1776 – 18 August 1862) is a fur trader and an explorer who charts much of what is now the Canadian province of British Columbia.

Fraser is employed by the Montreal-based North West Company.

By 1805, he has been put in charge of all the company's operations west of the Rocky Mountains.

He is responsible for building that area's first trading posts, and, in 1808, he explores what is now known as the Fraser River, which bears his name.

Simon Fraser's exploratory efforts are partly responsible for Canada's boundary later being established at the 49th parallel (after the War of 1812), since he as a British subject is the first European to establish permanent settlements in the area.