Lismore is on the bank of the river Hinds, in the county of Ashburton, and is seventy-three miles from Christchurch, with which it has postal communication three times a week. The nearest telegraph office is at Mayfield, seven miles away. Lismore is connected by an eight-mile coach service with the Hinds railway station. The district is devoted chiefly to the pasturage of sheep, but the cultivated land yields excellent crops of wheat and oats.