John Tanner may refer to:
- John S. Tanner (born 1944), former U.S. congressman from Tennessee
- John Riley Tanner (1844–1901), former governor of Illinois
- John Tanner, character in Bernard Shaw's play Man and Superman
- John Tanner (American football) (1897 - ?), player in the National Football League, 1922-1924
- John Tanner (cyclist) (born 1968), British champion racing cyclist
- John Tanner (Mormon) (1778-1850), chief financial backer of the Kirtland Temple.
- John S. Tanner (Mormon) (born 1950), former Academic Vice President of Brigham Young University
- John Tanner (criminal), convicted of the 1991 murder of Rachel McLean
- John Tanner (narrator) (c. 1780–after 1846), child kidnapped by Indians, author of book about it
- John Tanner (cricketer) (1772–1858), English amateur cricketer
- John Tanner (footballer) (1921–1987), English footballer
- John Tanner (ice hockey) (born 1971), retired ice hockey player
- John Shirley Frederick Tanner (1889–1965), British trade unionist
- John Tanner (MP) for Malmesbury (UK Parliament constituency)
Famous quotes containing the word tanner:
“Is it the lumberman, then, who is the friend and lover of the pine, stands nearest to it, and understands its nature best? Is it the tanner who has barked it, or he who has boxed it for turpentine, whom posterity will fable to have been changed into a pine at last? No! no! it is the poet.... All the pines shudder and heave a sigh when that man steps on the forest floor.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)