The history of the school dates back to 1866, when it was founded as a Sunday school of commerce. The eclectic building, designed by Józef Holewiński and Teofil Wiśniewski, was built between 1906 and 1907. It was funded by a renowned philanthropist and a Lublin-based industrialist – August Karol Vetter. It was the first educational institution in Poland that received tsar’s approval for teaching in polish. Among the graduates were Jerzy de Tramecourt – the last Lublin governor before the war and Boleslaw Bierut, the president of the Polish People’s Republic, whose hometown was Lublin.

The A. and J. Vetter complex of schools of economics continues the traditions of the school that existed here before. Inside there's a memorial chamber devoted to the school's patrons and its history.