 Hagerman quickly decided to build rail and irrigation concerns in the region to enlarge his holdings.In 1895 Hagerman donated the flat land atop North Hill in Roswell to New Mexico Military Institute, allowing the school to reopen in Fall 1898.Prior to his move to New Mexico, in 1890 Hagerman incorporated the Pecos Valley Railroad to construct a railroad from Pecos, Texas, to Eddy (now Carlsbad), New Mexico, along the Pecos River.