Sir William Henry Houldsworth, 1st Baronet DL (20 August 1834 – 18 April 1917) was a British mill-owner in Reddish, Lancashire.

Houldworth's mother died while he was very young; while her exact date of death is unknown, his father remarried in 1838.

In later life, Houldsworth moved away from Reddish and Manchester, and concentrated on his estate, Coodham, Ayrshire in Scotland, where he built a domestic chapel designed by Alfred Waterhouse.

A drinking fountain and four-faced clock, paid for by public subscription, was unveiled in Houldsworth Square on 11 September 1920.

[3] He was a keen golfer and along with the Hon A.J.Balfour (Prime Minister from 1902-5) was instrumental in the establishment of the Balfour and Houldsworth Golf Challenge Cups.