Samuel Amess was mayor of Melbourne from 1869–1870

Samuel Amess bought Churchill Island in 1872 when he was at the height of his career as a successful stonemason and builder.  

He had been appointed Mayor of Melbourne in 1869 and was responsible for some of the most significant building works in Melbourne during the prosperous years after the gold rush of the 1850s.

Amess bought Churchill Island as a summer retreat for his family after hearing about its abundant produce.  

During his time on the island he built the homestead Amess House and, as a member of the Victorian Acclimatisation Society, introduced rabbits, quails and pheasants.  

He also established a herd of West Highland cattle which, as a Scotsman, were to “maintain fond memories of the land of his birth”.

Samuel extended crops and grew many trees including some which are included on the National Trust Historic Trees register, including Norfolk pines, olive and mulberry trees, and native moonahs.

Churchill Island passed through two further generations of the Amess family, as a holiday farm, with managers and servants maintaining the property. 

The island was eventually sold in 1929 to another man famous in his time, Gerald Buckley.