A Namibian railway worker found a stone glowing in the sand in 1908; within years, it turned a desert settlement into Africa’s richest place before it became a ghost town

In 1908, Namibian railway worker Zacharias Lewala spotted a strange stone glinting in the low light one evening as he worked along the railway line near the remote settlement of Kolmanskop. Curious about the unusual find, he picked it up and took it to his German superior, August Stauch, a railway foreman stationed at nearby Grasplatz who also happened to be an amateur mineralogist.

Stauch had previously instructed his workers to bring him any unusual stones they came across while clearing sand from the railway tracks. When he examined Lewala’s find, Stauch suspected it was a diamond. The discovery was later confirmed by mining engineer Söhnke Nissen, Stauch’s friend and future business partner.

What followed was a rush of fortune-seekers into the barren and world’s oldest Namib Desert. Within just a few years, Kolmanskop had transformed from an isolated railway station into one of the richest towns in Africa, complete with luxurious homes, a hospital, a casino, a theatre, a ballroom, a bowling alley and even an ice factory.


But the diamonds eventually ran out. Today, the once-prosperous settlement lies abandoned, with towering sand dunes pouring through its doorways and swallowing rooms that once embodied extraordinary wealth.

This is the story of Kolmanskop, the Namibian ghost town where a diamond boom created a remarkable desert settlement, before the desert reclaimed it.

The diamond rush of Kolmanskop

Kolmanskop is located less than 10 miles east of the coastal town of Lüderitz in Namibia. The settlement began as a small railway station in 1908, when the railway connecting Lüderitz with Keetmanshoop was being constructed.

According to local legend, the station took its name from a Nama man called Coleman, who became stranded at the site with his ox wagon and died of thirst.

That same year, however, Kolmanskop's fate changed dramatically. Railway worker Zacharias Lewala discovered a strange stone while working along the railway line. It caught the light and appeared to shine in the sand.

Lewala took the stone to August Stauch, the railway foreman at nearby Grasplatz. Stauch was a keen amateur mineralogist and had instructed workers to bring unusual stones to him. He suspected immediately that Lewala had found a diamond.

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The stone was subsequently examined by Stauch's friend and future business partner, mining engineer Söhnke Nissen, who confirmed the discovery. According to National Geographic, Lewala was not paid or rewarded for finding the diamond.

Stauch and Nissen, meanwhile, left their jobs and secured mining claims covering 75 square kilometers around Kolmanskop. They began searching for more diamonds.

Diamond fever turns the desert into a boomtown

The discovery could not remain secret for long. News of diamonds in the region triggered a wave of prospectors, adventurers and workers heading into the desert. Within only a few years, Kolmanskop underwent an extraordinary transformation.

By the early 1910s, the settlement had become one of the richest towns in Africa and was regarded as one of the wealthiest communities in the world. For a settlement in one of the world's harshest deserts, its infrastructure was remarkable.

By 1911, Kolmanskop had electricity. Its residents had access to luxurious stone houses, a casino, a school, a hospital, a theatre, a ballroom, a sports hall, a bowling alley and a saltwater swimming pool, according to info-namibia.

The town even had an ice factory, producing ice that residents could use in refrigerators. And all of this existed despite the settlement having fewer than 400 residents.

The hospital had another unusual distinction: it reportedly became the first hospital in southern Africa to install an X-ray machine. The equipment may also have served a less conventional purpose: monitoring diamond workers suspected of swallowing stones.

By the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, around one tonne of diamonds had reportedly been extracted. But the war brought mining production almost to a standstill. The end of German colonial rule in the region also marked the end of the German era of diamond mining, with operations subsequently coming under South African control.

The diamonds move south and Kolmanskop begins to die

Kolmanskop's decline was ultimately caused by the very resource that had made it rich. By 1928, more profitable diamond deposits had been discovered farther south, stretching from the area south of Lüderitz toward the Orange River.

The deposits around Kolmanskop were becoming depleted. Mining operations gradually moved south, and by 1938, machinery was being removed from Kolmanskop.

The town was left behind. Without its diamond industry, there was little reason for residents to remain in such an isolated and unforgiving environment.

The last inhabitants eventually departed between 1956 and 1960. The once-bustling settlement became a ghost town. Then the desert began moving in.

Kolmanskop as a tourist attraction

In 1980, as Lüderitz experienced an economic revival, attention turned toward Kolmanskop's potential as a tourist destination. Some of the buildings were excavated from the sand and restored so visitors could explore the remains of the former mining town.

In 2002, a local private company, Ghost Town Tours, was awarded a concession to manage Kolmanskop as a tourist attraction, bringing visitors into the restricted area to explore and photograph its sand-filled ruins.