The Warrnambool resident was one of the 13,000 children jammed into Hamilton's Melville Oval on February 26, 1954.

"I remember going to see the Queen in Hamilton," Mrs Mugavin recalled. "I was a Brownie. I must have been around 10 or 11.

"I can remember the train stopping at Koroit and we were so excited. We were on the road. I remember standing there with the little flag and seeing her drive past in an open car.

"I thought it was magic. It was one of the highlights of my life."

For Christmas that year Mrs Mugavin's mum gave her some books about the Queen which she's treasured ever since.

"I've got about half a dozen books about the coronation and her as a little girl," she said. "I've still got all the books from when I was a kid. When I downsized to my unit I gave all my books away but I couldn't part with them."

Mrs Mugavin's oldest and most precious item is a silver teaspoon, that belonged to her grandmother.

The spoon commemorates the coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth on May 12, 1937.

"I'm a royalist," she said. "I love the royal family. In those days we were all royalists. These days you can be whatever. We were brought up with the royals."

Mrs Mugavin said she was sad to hear Queen Elizabeth II had died and her collection of memorabilia items felt even more special now.

Don't miss Monday's Queen souvenir in print in The Standard, plus live coverage of the funeral

It's your must-have royal souvenir: Memories of Her Majesty - When The Queen Came To Town.

From the moment she first stepped off the royal barge in Sydney Harbour on the morning of February 3, 1954, generations of Australians have embraced and admired Queen Elizabeth II.

Her 16 Australian tours included visits to hundreds of towns in every corner of the continent.

Celebrate the history and majesty of the late Queen and her affection for Australia with Memories of Her Majesty - When The Queen Came To Town - your 20-page special commemorative souvenir available only with Monday's print edition of your favourite daily ACM newspaper, the Standard.

READ MORE:

With historic photos from the archives and flashbacks to local coverage of memorable royal tours, our editors, journalists and photographers join with readers and civic leaders to share treasured memories of their community's brush with the monarch.

Don't miss your must-have royal souvenir in Monday's print edition.

And be sure to join our live coverage from 5pm Monday.

From 5pm Monday, the ACM national team will have live coverage of Her Majesty's funeral from London.

Who's there, what's happening, what Australians are saying and the local memories of royal visits from our reporters and readers around Australia.

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