Fraser, Simon (1776–1862), a Canadian explorer. Fraser was born near what is now Bennington, Vermont, and was taken to Canada as a child. He joined the North West Company, a fur-trading organization, in 1792 and became a partner in 1801. In 1805 he began to establish trading posts west of the Rockies, along what is now known as the Fraser River. He followed the river to its mouth in 1808. Fraser retired from the North West Company in 1820.