It was founded by members of the New York Manumission Society, including Alexander Hamilton and John Jay, on November 2, 1787.

The school was founded by the New York Manumission Society, an organization that advocated the full abolition of African slavery.

Andrews used the methods of Joseph Lancaster, a British school reformer whose system employed student assistants or "monitors," permitting a single teacher to conduct classes as large as several hundred.

[citation needed] Andrews published a book in 1821 celebrating the schools' accomplishments, and they became a frequent stopping point for visitors to the city.

This was one of the period's most controversial racial issues, as by this time most American blacks were native born and their goal was to achieve equal political rights in the United States.