Felt director talks about Pope’s local connection

Remnants from the Augustinian Seminary at the Felt Estate, 6597 138th Ave., this July 17, 2025, photo. The mansion is in the background. The stone grotto was built by seminary students.

The first American Pope’s connection with Laketown Township is the topic of a presentation at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2026, at the Pump House Museum and Learning Center, 2282 Ottawa Beach Road, in Park Township.

The event is free.

Elizabeth McEwen, executive director of the Felt Estate, 6597 138^th Ave., in Laketown Township, will talk about the Pope – Robert Francis Prevost of Chicago who graduated from the seminary in Laketown Township in 1973.

“People are understandably fascinated to learn that Pope Leo XIV once spent time at the Felt Estate, but what I love about that connection is that it opens the door to a much bigger story,” she said. “For nearly three decades, the estate was home to a vibrant seminary community. I hope people come because they’re curious about the Pope and leave with a deeper understanding of this fascinating chapter in our local history.”

The seminary property was the site of the home of Dorr E. Felt, inventor of the Comptometer, the first machine that could do all four math functions — add, subtract, multiply and divide. Construction of the mansion began in 1925 and was completed in 1928. After the death of Felt, the family sold the property to the Augustinian order in 1949. The seminary was dedicated on Sept. 22, 1949, and mass was celebrated in the new chapel in the former living room of the mansion.

The school expanded and added dormitories in what is now Shore Acres Park.

After declining enrollment, the school closed in 1977, and the State of Michigan purchased the land. The Saugatuck Dunes Correctional Facility opened in 1978 along with Saugatuck Dunes State Park, 1,000 acres with 2.5 miles of Lake Michigan shoreline.

The prison closed in 1991.

In 1996, the state sold the prison property to Laketown Township for $1.

In 2001, Patty Meyer discovered the boarded-up mansion, and began working to restore the building to its former glory. Meyer retired as director of the estate in 2023. McEwen was hired and began work as executive director in September 2023.

Today, following years of restoration by the Friends of the Felt Estate, the mansion is a top cultural, educational, and event destination, welcoming thousands of visitors annually.

About the program

The Pump House Museum event included five speakers starting July 1. Topics have included the significance of trees in the Grand Haven area, Tulp Trime, Native American history and a local woman who helped refugees escape Nazi-occupied Europe.