The house was built in 1847 by Barrister Edward Williams as a home for his family. It is a mixture of Australian and Italian style to reflect his elegant lifestyle.  He sold it to Frederick Dalgety in 1852 and with the year he had sold it on again to John Brown and his wife. They added the second story, tower and outbuildings, and employed William Sangster to design the surrounding 5 acres of ground. The water garden and fountain were designed by Ellis Stones.  Due to a change in financial situation he had to remortgage the house, which was eventually sold on by auction to Charles Armytage and his wife who raised their children there, after their deaths, their daughters Leila, Constance and Laura continued to live on the house. In all the Armytage family had Como House as their home for 95 years before handing it over to the National Trust in 1959, to preserve it as a representation of colonial Victoria.