Simon James Dawson (June 13, 1818 – October 30, 1902) was a Canadian civil engineer and politician.

[1] Born in Redhaven, Banffshire, Scotland, Dawson emigrated to Canada as a young man and began his career as an engineer.

In 1857, as a member of a Canadian government expedition, he surveyed a line of road from Prince Arthur’s Landing (later Port Arthur, now part of Thunder Bay, Ontario) to Fort Garry and further explored that area in 1858 and 1859.

In 1868, he was placed in charge of construction of a wagon and water route following his earlier survey by the newly formed federal Department of Public Works.

[3] As a Scottish Roman Catholic, he was an anomaly in Protestant Ontario where most Scots were Presbyterian.