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While [[Tikhon of Moscow|Abp. Tikhon]]'s plans included the consecration of ethnic [[auxiliary bishop]]s, the first attempts at forming a Serbian diocese was made in 1913, under the then Metropolitanate of Belgrade. But, this attempt failed as the Metropolitanate did not respond to the requests from America and the 19 Serbian parishes remained with the Russian diocese.
With the disintegration of the American diocese following the Bolshevik coup in 1917 the diocese was unable to consecrate Archimandrite [[Mardarije (Uskoković) of America|Mardarije (Uskokovic) ]] as bishop for the Serbian parishes, in 1919, and the mission diocese requested his consecration by the new Serbian Patriarch Dimitriye. But, Pat. Dimitriye made Mardary head of the Rakovitsa Monastery instead. The American Serbians then asked the Patriarch to sent Bp. Nicolai (Velimirovich), which he did, with Archimandrite Mardary as his deputy. Serving as a parish priest in Chicago, Fr. Mardary did much of the organizational work for the diocese, including purchasing with his own funds the St Sava Monastery site in Libertyville, Illinois.
Archimandrite Mardary was called back to Belgrade and consecrated by the Serbian Patriarch Dimitriye in April 1926 as head of the ''Serbian Eastern Orthodox Diocese of America and Canada'', After his consecration, Bp. Mardary returned to the United States on [[May 8]], 1927. He convened the first Church Assembly in Chicago [[May 29]]-30, 1927. Against various problems Bp. Mardary continued organizing the diocese, although an advancing case of tuberculosis began to take its toll, resulting in his death on [[December 12]], 1935 at the age of 46. In 1940, Bishop [[Dionisije (Milivojevich) of United States and Canada|Dionisije]] was assigned to the Serbian Eastern Orthodox Diocese of America and Canada in the United States with Hieromonk [[Fermilian (Ocokoljich) of Midwestern America|Firmilian]] as his assistant.
