Remembering Elizabeth's Coronation, Wednesday May 28, 2003

Monday June 2, 2003 Queen Elizabeth II will celebrate the 50th anniversary of her coronation. Among those in Westminster Abbey to witness the historic event were Dundas Mayor, John Don, and his wife Ellen.

The Dons received their invitation on March 10, 1953. It read: "Coronation of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, by Command of The Queen, the Earl Marshal is directed to invite His Worship Mayor John C. Don and Mrs. Don to be present at the Abbey Church of Westminster on the 2nd of June 1953."

Of the 7,000 seats in the Abbey, 400 were allotted to Canadians. Seating was conditional with priority given according to the mailing date of the receipt of invitation. If Abbey seating were unavailable, opportunity would be given to purchase seats in a stand at Canada House on Trafalgar Square. The Dons received prize seats on the north side of the nave in Westminster.

Reluctant to finance the $1,700 cost of the trip from tax dollars, Town Council's Ways and Means Committee gave citizens opportunity to participate. Council allotted $200 for the trip. The balance was raised by citizens, among them Guide and Brownie groups and the National Association of Machinists of which Mayor Don was a member. Leaving Dundas on May 20th, the Dons traveled by train to Montreal, then boarded the Empress of France to journey to Liverpool. Wishing them 'Bon Voyage' were family, friends, Dundas councilors Alex Warren and Hugh Everett and Town Clerk, George Corner.

Dress for the coronation was formal. Ellen Don wore a French design dress of pale lilac, made by her daughter, Lillian Harrison. The Mayor was resplendent in white tie and tails, borrowed from councilor Warren. In Westminster Abbey they were seated on stools constructed of oak, covered in blue velvet and trimmed with gold braid. To their left was the Lord Mayor London, to their right, a retired admiral of the Royal Navy.

Mayor Don describes the historic event. "On entering this building one seems to feel that he has actually arrived at "The Heart of the Empire" and particularly on that day when it was filled to overflow with such a varied and colourful mass of people from all parts of The World… That day was dull and raining outside... At the actual minute of Crowning a break in the clouds did take place, and we could see the sun shine through the Abbey windows, for the first time that day, and no words of mine could convey to you the brilliance of that scene. Sufficient to say that when the sun shone through, striking peeresses and peers, dukes and earls, in their coronets and jewels, it presented a picture of splendour and sparkle which will stay with me for the remainder of my life."

"…After being crowned, Queen Elizabeth II, followed by her Maids of Honour and all her Attendants paraded slowly, very slowly down the aisle to leave The Abbey, and as the great floodlights which had been installed for television purposes played on this procession, and in particular on the crown on the Queen's head, and on the Orb and sceptre in her hands and on the dresses of her Maids of Honour and attendants the picture produced is beyond the power of my words to describe… The expression on the Queen's face as she passed us at that triumphal moment was one of extreme humility..."

Following the coronation, the Dons purchased the stools they had used. The cost: four pounds sterling per stool. They have been donated by daughter Lillian Harrison to the Dundas Museum. In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Queen's coronation, you are invited to the Museum to view these stools and other treasured artifacts from the occasion on loan from the Don family and royal commemorative china from the Museum's collection. The Museum is open Tuesday through Friday, 10 - 4, and Sunday afternoons, 2- 4.

website updated June 23, 2010
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