Philip Dansken Ross was born on January 1, 1858, in Montreal, Quebec, the son of Philip Simpson Ross (1827-1907), a Montreal accountant and businessman.

He was a Canadian journalist, newspaper publisher, ice hockey administrator, and politician. In 1875, he graduated from McGill University, where he was on the football and rowing clubs. As a captain of the McGill football club, Ross led it to victory against Harvard University in the first Canada-U.S. international football game in 1878. He was a provincial single sculling champion, played lacrosse, and founded several golf clubs. He began to work for the Montreal Harbour Commission but left to join the staff at the Montreal Star in 1880 and soon became its managing editor. In 1886, Ross became co-owner of the Ottawa Evening Journal, and, in 1891, he bought out his partner, made it into a highly successful paper, and served as its president for 60 years. He was one of the founders of the Canadian Press Newspaper Association and became its first president. He helped build the Ottawa Hockey Club (now the Ottawa Senators). He befriended the sons of Lord Stanley, the Governor-General of Canada. In 1892, Lord Stanley appointed him a trustee for his championship ice hockey trophy, known today as the Stanley Cup. He also helped found the Ontario Hockey Association in 1890. Ross won the election as alderman in Ottawa (1902-1923) but lost in the 1914 election for Ottawa mayor. In 1933, he served as president of McGill's Graduate Society. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1976.

In 1891, he married Mary Beasley Littlejohn (1866–1943). He died on July 5, 1949, in Ottawa, Ontario.