Kanailal Vidyamandir was established as the “Saint Mary’s Institution” by “Father Maglayer Barthet” in 1862. At first, it used to teach only the French language as Chandannagar was a French colony. English education was started in 1872 by the then-Puducherry French government.

In 1887 the institution was taken over by the French government. In 1901 “Saint Mary’s Institution” was renamed “Dupleix College”. In 1908 the college department of “Dupleix College” was abolished which was later restored in 1931 by the efforts of Charu Chandra Ray, Harihar Seth, and Narayan Chandra Dey. The school was renamed Kanailal Vidyamandir after the Bengali revolutionary Shahid Kanailal Dutta, a student of this school, on 17 May 1948 just before the liberation from French rule. The Centenary ceremony of the school was inaugurated by Dr. Brajakanta Guha, the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Burdwan on its first day. The school celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2012. This school has produced numerous scholars who later became big names in their respective fields.

Colonial architecture is visible on the building made of brick and lime with a wooden roof. It was declared a heritage in 2017 by the West Bengal Heritage Commission.