Philip Dansken Ross (January 1, 1858 – July 5, 1949) was a Canadian journalist, newspaper publisher, amateur athlete, and

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

administrator.

Early life

Philip Dansken Ross was born in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

to parents Christina Chalmers Dansken and Montreal accountant Philip Simpson Ross. Ross studied at

McGill University McGill University (French: Université McGill) is an English-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill University, Vol. I. For the Advancement of Learning, ...

as a science major in 1875. At McGill, Ross played for the football and rowing clubs, later captaining the McGill football club to victory against Harvard University in the first Canada-U.S. international football game in 1878. He was provincial single

sculling Sculling is the use of oars to propel a boat by moving them through the water on both sides of the craft, or moving one oar over the stern. A long, narrow boat with sliding seats, rigged with two oars per rower may be referred to as a scull, its ...

champion twice. He also played

lacrosse Lacrosse is a contact team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game w ...

and founded several

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...

clubs. He graduated from McGill in 1875, with honours.

Career

Upon graduation, Ross worked for the Montreal Harbour Commission. He left the Commission and joined the staff at the

Montreal Star ''The Montreal Star'' was an English language, English-language Canada, Canadian newspaper published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It closed in 1979 in the wake of an eight-month pressmen's strike. It was Canada's largest newspaper until the 1950 ...

in 1880. He joined the Toronto Daily Mail as a journalist. He returned to Montreal and joined the Montreal Star in 1885, eventually becoming its managing editor. In 1886, Ross became co-owner of the near-bankrupt Ottawa Evening Journal newspaper. In 1891 he bought out his partner and made it into a highly successful and respected paper. He served as its president for 60 years during which time he helped found the

Canadian Press The Canadian Press (CP; , ) is a Canadian national news agency headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Established in 1917 as a vehicle for Canadian newspapers to exchange news and information, The Canadian Press has been a private, not-for-profit c ...

newspaper association. He was a builder and sometimes player of the Ottawa Hockey Club, later to be known as the

Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. The Senators compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Di ...

. With this club, he befriended the sons of Lord Stanley, the Governor-General of Canada. In 1892, Lord Stanley appointed him to be a trustee for his championship

trophy, known today as the

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup () is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, and the International Ic ...

. He helped found the

Ontario Hockey Association The Ontario Hockey Association (OHA) is the governing body for the majority of junior and senior level ice hockey teams in the province of Ontario. Founded in 1890, the OHA is sanctioned by the Ontario Hockey Federation along with the Northern ...

in 1890. He played in the first Ontario championship game in 1891 at the Rideau Rink in Ottawa, helping Ottawa win 5-0 over Toronto St. George's. Ross was one of the two original Trustees of the Stanley Cup named by Lord Stanley in 1894, and so served for 56 years until his death. He also served as trustee for the

Minto Cup The Minto Cup is awarded annually to the champion junior men's box lacrosse team of Canada. The 2023 competition is in Edmonton, Alberta, from August 20–27. It was donated in 1901 by the Governor General of Canada, Governor General, Gilbert Jo ...

of lacrosse. He turned down the trusteeship for the

Grey Cup The Grey Cup () is both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. The game is contested between the winners ...

of Canadian football. He was inducted into the

Hockey Hall of Fame The Hockey Hall of Fame () is a museum and hall of fame located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League (NHL) records, memorabilia and National Hockey Le ...

in 1976.

Politics

He also went into politics. In 1912, Ross was nominated by the Civic Improvement League to be their mayoral candidate. This upset Wilson Southam, publisher of the

Ottawa Citizen The ''Ottawa Citizen'' is an English-language daily newspaper owned by Postmedia Network in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. History Established as the Bytown ''Packet'' in 1845 by William Harris (journalist), William Harris, it was renamed the ''Ci ...

, who disliked that Ross and the League promoted "compulsory vaccination and elitism." Ross would end up losing in the election. In 1928, Ross served as president of the Liberal-Conservative Association of Ottawa. On September 10, 1929, Ross was elected chairman of the Ontario Royal Commission on Public Welfare "to investigate provision of services in hospitals, prisons and other provincial institutions." In 1931, he turned down the opportunity to be appointed

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

of Ontario. In 1933, he served as president of McGill's Graduate Society.

Legacy and personal life

The

Ontario Heritage Foundation The Ontario Heritage Trust () is a non-profit agency of the Ontario Ministry of Tourism and Culture. It is responsible for protecting, preserving and promoting the built, natural and cultural heritage of Canada's most populous province, Ontario. ...

erected a plaque commemorating Philip Dansken Ross 1858–1949 at the Journal Towers, Kent Street between Laurier and Slater, Ottawa. "A distinguished journalist widely admired for his candour of expression and depth of knowledge, P.D. Ross was publisher-owner of the Ottawa Journal and one of the founders of the Canadian Press". Ross married Mary Littlejohn in 1891. Ross died on July 5, 1949, in

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Canada. He was interred at

Beechwood Cemetery Beechwood Cemetery is the national cemetery of Canada, located in Vanier, Ottawa, Ontario. Over 82,000 people are buried in the cemetery, including Governor General Ramon Hnatyshyn, Prime Minister Robert Borden, and several members of Parlia ...

in Ottawa.Ontario Cemetery Finding Aid
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References

General * * * Specific

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ross, Philip Dansken 1858 births 1949 deaths 19th-century Canadian journalists Burials at Beechwood Cemetery (Ottawa) Businesspeople from Montreal Canadian male journalists Canadian newspaper publishers (people) Canadian sportsperson-politicians Hockey Hall of Fame inductees Journalists from Montreal McGill University Faculty of Science alumni Ottawa Senators (original) personnel Ottawa Senators (original) players Ottawa city councillors