Lismore, New South Wales, is a city with a layered history, deeply connected to the land of the Bundjalung people. The area, which forms part of the Bundjalung people's nation, has a contested history regarding the origin of its name and the precise boundaries of the Bundjalung territory. Some scholars suggest that the name "Tuckurimbah," meaning "glutton," was used by the Aboriginal people to describe the area. These early associations continue to be explored today.

The British colonial history of Lismore began around 1843 when Captain Dumaresq took up a pastoral run of 93 square kilometers in the region. This land, stocked with sheep from the New England area, proved unsuitable for sheep grazing due to the subtropical climate. Subsequently, the run was abandoned. In 1845, William and Jane Wilson, Scottish immigrants who arrived in New South Wales in 1833, took over the land. Mrs. Wilson named the property "Lismore," after the small island of Lismore in Scotland's Inner Hebrides.

In 1855, surveyor Frederick Peppercorne was tasked by Sir Thomas Mitchell to find a suitable site for a township in the area. His map was submitted in 1856, and the chosen location, situated on William Wilson’s homestead paddock, was proclaimed the "Town of Lismore" on May 1, 1856. The township quickly grew, with the first post office opening in 1859.

As the town developed, the Wilson family relocated their homestead to Monaltrie, six kilometers south of the town center in 1861. Monaltrie, still standing today, is considered by some to be "Lismore's oldest home." However, historical records also attribute this distinction to "Lochiel," a timber house built in 1860, once owned by Mr. and Mrs. John Jones, later serving as a local hospital between 1911 and 1917. These early homes and settlements mark the beginning of Lismore’s transformation from pastoral land into the regional city it is today.