Lushoto is one of the eleven districts of Tanga Region in Tanzania.

Large farms and plantations were created, and the district was valued for its pleasant mountain climate.

Between 1893 and 1911, the German Ostafrikanische Eisenbahngesellschaft (East African Railway Company) constructed an important railway line starting at Tanga on the coast and passing along the Usambara Mountains with a station at Mombo, about 20 kilometers (12 mi) from Wilhelmstal, to "New" Moshi at Kilimanjaro.

The initial plan of the Usambarabahn was to connect the port of Tanga with Lake Victoria by passing south of the Usambara Mountains.

This was in direct competition with parallel British efforts in colonial Kenya.