The school was opened by John Fothergill, described in the book as an "eminent physician of London and a man of much influence in the Society of Friends." Originally built as a branch of the Foundling Hospital in London, work started in 1757 and cost about £13,000. The governors of the "Hospital for the Maintenance and Education of Exposed and Deserted Young Children" had already established branches in Shrewsbury, Chester and Westerham. Their move to Ackworth was in view of the "great advantages from having one amongst the active and enterprising people of the northern counties." The hospital eventually closed in 1773 and remained empty for several years, during which time it seems to have avoided being turned into a "lunatic asylum" and "being sold and taken down for the materials." It was on hearing that the building may be "disposed of" that Fothergill bought it along with 85 acres of surrounding lands for £7,000. This purchase in 1777 was fully approved by the Society of Friends in 1778 and the school set up in 1779. Fothergill died in 1780, by which time 80 girls and 150 boys were being taught there.