Josiah Bruce was a Canadian known for creating notable photographs of historic value in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century.

[1] Bruce's maternal grandfather, John Taylor, was a naval hero who served under Horatio Nelson, who had his picture painted for Britain's National Picture Gallery after he dived in and managed to retrieve dispatches a French officer had tried to dispose of by throwing them overboard.

Bruce studied architectureat the Paisley Block School.

[2] Bruce worked for Notman for about fifteen years before setting up his photography studio in Toronto.

According to his biographer Joan M. Schwarz, Bruce's 1876 photo of Ned Hanlan was probably the first ever taken of the famous rower.