Smith Hagaman was born in Watauga County, North Carolina, on May 6, 1868. Hagaman was a farmer in the Vilas community who served as a representative in the General Assembly (1909-1911), as superintendent of Watauga County schools (ca. 1914-1934), and as superintendent of North Carolina Baptist Hospital (1934-1945) in Winston-Salem. He died in Winston-Salem on May 31, 1957.