Nama rebellions broke out against the German Protectorate presence in southern Namibia in 1904. There was a vital need to improve the infrastructure of the area and supplies from the coast to the inland via ox-wagon proved slow and vulnerable to attack. The German government decided to deliver supplies, arms and ammunitions directly to the southern interior from Luderitz by rail.

From December 1905 to 31st October 1907 a railway line connected Luderitz to Aus and gradually on to Keetmanshoop. The improvement in the transport system, lead to a boom in the development of the town. The passage of shipping increased dramatically and with it the volume of cargo. Trading companies and the town's population increased in line with the flourishing economic growth.

In 1908, August Stauch, a German Railway Line Construction worker discovered the first diamonds in Namibia near Kolmanskop a few kilometres outside Luderitz. Diamond fields opened overnight and Luderitz became an overnight sensation. The original railway line's capacity for transporting only cargo quickly became overburdened with passengers and the existing railway station became inadequate to deal with the excess.

In 1914 a brand new station building was opened in Luderitz styled in the 'emergence of modern architecture in Germany at the time'. The Station Building in Luderitz was officially proclaimed a national monument on 13th December 1976.

Luderitz Hotel