John Motz (born Johannes Motz; 5 June 1830 – 29 October 1911) was a Canadian politician, German-language newspaper proprietor, sheriff and tailor. Born near Mühlhausen in the Province of Saxony, Prussia (today part of Thuringia, Germany), he immigrated to Berlin, Canada West (now Kitchener, Ontario) in 1848. In 1859, he and fellow immigrant founded the Berliner Journal, a German-language newspaper based in Berlin. Motz served as its editor for the next forty years before retiring in 1899, becoming the honorary sheriff of Waterloo County, a position he held until his death in 1911.