Local link to Pope topic of presentation

Elizabeth McEwen presents on Aug. 26 at free series at the Pump House Museum in Park Township.

A volunteer paints a railing in May at the Felt Estate, 6597 138th Ave., in Laketown Township. The mansion is in the background. In the foreground is a stone marker next to a grotto constructed during the years the site was an Augustinian seminary.

The local connection to the first American Pope is featured in the 2026 Summer Speaker Series at the Pump House Museum and Learning Center in Park Township.

Elizabeth McEwen, executive director of the Felt Estate, 6597 138th Ave., in Laketown Township, will speak at 7 p.m. Aug. 26, 2026, about Pope Leo XIV who attended the Augustinian Order seminary at the site which was on the grounds of what is now Shore Acres Park and the Felt Estate.

The speaker program

The Pump House event features five evening presentations in July and August focusing on the people, places, and events that helped shape the history of Holland and the Ottawa Beach area.

Doors open at 6 p.m. Programs begin at 7 p.m. Admission is free.

The museum is at 2282 Ottawa Beach Road.

The series was announced in a press release by the Ottawa County Parks & Recreation Commission.

The speaker program begins July 1 with Wally Ewing presenting the history, beauty, and significance of trees in the Grand Haven region.

On July 16, Deborah Schakel discusses Lida Rogers, the educator and civic leader who helped inspire Tulip Time.

On July 29, Rick Bosch will talk about Chief Joseph Waukazoo, the Old Wing Mission, and the Native American history of Holland.

On Aug. 12, Deb Schakel presents on Mary Jayne Gold, a Holland-area socialite who helped refugees escape Nazi-occupied Europe during World War II.

On Aug. 26, the series wraps with McEwen’s talk on the Pope Leo XIV.

The Felt Estate, 6597 138th Ave., in Laketown Township, and Pope Leo XIV, is the topic of a presentation on Aug. 26, 2026, at the Pump House Museum and Learning Center in Park Township.

The local connection

The Pope – Robert Francis Prevost of Chicago – graduated from the seminary in Laketown Township in 1973.

The 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.