Henry Franklin Bronson (February 24, 1817 – December 7, 1889) was an American-Canadian lumber baron known as one of Ottawa's early entrepreneurs, establishing a large lumber mill at Chaudière Falls on the Ottawa River. Bronson's efforts helped to convert a fledgling small town into a prosperous city. In search of new sources of timber, Bronson visited the Ottawa Valley in the summer of 1848. With Bytown's Chaudière Falls as a potential source for power, and the large amount of timber in the area, he decided "on the spot" that the islands located there would be a good location for a sawmill.