The Serbian people coming to the United States of America from various regions of Srbija, realized almost immediately the need to become organized and to be able to lean on each other in order to assure survival in this new land. They immediately noticed that this was the means of survival for other ethnic groups too, such as the Russians, Czechs, Slovaks and others. For that reason, even before the founding of the first Serbian Federation, there were several independent Serbian lodges formed who attached themselves to the Russian Federation, called the "Russian Orthodox Federation." 

When the Convention of the Russian Orthodox Federation was held May 14, 1901, attending were the following delegates: Adam Maravich of McKeesport, PA, with Sava Hajdin of South Side-Pittsburgh, PA, Mile Kasar of Butler Street, Pittsburgh, Petar Hajdin of South Side-Pittsburgh and Simo Lapcevich of Export, PA. 

These five delegates saw that it would be beneficial to the Serbs to have their own Federation where they could feel as though they were "at home." Not long after this Russian Convention, a group of Serbs met in McKeesport, PA, and thus on June 15, 1901, they founded the first Serbian Federation, under the name: "Serbian Orthodox Federation-Srbobran." 

They elected as their first President Sava M. Hajdin. When the 40th Anniversary of the Federation was observed in 1941, many of the original organizers were still living and the Minutes of the founding of the Federation were added to their commemorative book published for that occasion. It is deemed worthy to repeat those minutes on the occasion of the observance of the 90th Anniversary. This was not only a record of minutes of meetings, but in them are cited the objectives of the Federation, duties and obligations of the members, rights of the membership, elections of the leaders and also oaths, all which testifies to the great nationalistic consciousness of the first Serb pioneers and the founders of the Federation. 

Although the Serb National Federation, the oldest and the largest Serbian Fraternal organization on this continent, had its roots and beginning from the year 1901, the year 1929 was a most important milestone in the progress of the SNF.  In 1929, the United Society "Srbobran-Sloga" and the Serbian Federation "Srbadija", the pioneer organizations of the Serb National Federation, merged and incorporated themselves and commenced business on September 21, 1929 under its present charter and under its present name, the SERB NATIONAL FEDERATION. Because of this important milestone, we take the time to call this propitious moment to the attention of our members. 

1901 - Founding of the Srpski Pravoslavni Savez "Srbobran," Pittsburgh, PA (Serbian Orthodox Society-Srbobran founded by Sava Hayden). 

1909 - Founding of the Savez Sjedinjenih Srba- "Sloga," Cleveland, Ohio, Federation of United Serbs (Unity founded by Michael Pupin). 

1917 - Srpski Savez - Sloboda (Serb Society - Sloboda) splintered off from the Srpski Pravoslavni Savez-Srbobran (Serbian Orthodox Society - Srbobran). 

1920 - Srpski Savez - Svesna Srbadija (Serbian Society-Svesna Srbadija) and Srpski Potporni Savez-Jedinstvo (Serbian Beneficial Federation Unity) splintered off from Savez Sjedinjenih Srba-Sloga (Federation of United Serbs Unity). 

1921 - Merger of Srpski Pravoslavni Savez-Srbobran (Serbian Orthodox Society-Srbobran) with Savez Sjedinjenih Srba-Sloga (Federation of United Serbs - Unity) to form the Srbobran-Sloga (United Society-Srbobran-Sloga). 

1927 - Merger of Srpski Savez Sloboda Srpski Savez Svesna Srbadji into Savez Sloboda. 

1929 - Merger of Srbobran-Sloga and Savez Sloboda into SERB NATIONAL FEDERATION. 

1960 - Independent Society "Obilich" merged into Serb National Federation. 

1963 - Srpski Potporni Savez "Jedinstvo" (Serbian Beneficial Federation "Unity") merged into Serb National Federation. 

The greatest achievement of the Serb National Federation was aiding Serbian Orthodox Churches in America and Canada and renewal of destroyed churches with the building of new ones in the Old Country, in all Serbian lands of Yugoslavia. The help given to the Serbian people in this cause has long ago exceeded a million dollars. And what the Federation has done for the Serbian church in the Old Country serves as a matter of pride for all of Serbianism, not only the Serbs in America and Canada. By this effort, Serbdom on the North American continent has given testimony that it has not severed spiritual ties with the Mother Church, with the roots of the birthplaces of their forefathers or with glorious Serbian history.