Joseph Grose Colmer was born on January 3, 1856, in Bloomsbury, Middlesex, England.

He was a Canadian civil servant and author who supported Anglo-Canadian cooperation. Born in England, he went to the Dominion as a youth and worked at the Merchants Bank of Canada. In 1880, he joined the Canadian Civil Service and in 1884, he served as the Private secretary to the first High Commissioner for Canada Sir Alexander Galt and his successors Charles Tupper and Lord Strathcona in London, England. In 1893, he left government service but continued to take a keen interest in Anglo-Canadian relations. He also served as Secretary on the Colonisation Board (1889–1926); Honorary Secretary of the Canadian War Contingent Association (1914–1919); and Honorary Secretary of Canada Club (1896–1922). He shared a Statist Prize of 1000 guineas in 1896 for an essay on the Commercial Federation of the Empire. He was also a member of the Tariff Commission (1904) and one of HM’s Lieutenants, City of London (1918). He was an advocate of an Imperial Preference system. He published numerous articles and essays on various aspects of life in Canada and its politics and industries. He wrote the book "Across the Canadian Prairies: A Two Months' Holiday in the Dominion" (1895).

In 1887, he married Margaret Cox (1861–?). He died on February 27, 1937, in London, England.