[4] Born in Baltimore, Maryland, he was the only son of Jacob Hackerman and Anna Raffel, immigrants from the Baltic regions of the Russian Empire that later became Estonia and Latvia, respectively.

He was named professor emeritus of chemistry at the University of Texas in 1985 and taught classes until the end of his life.

The building was completed in late 2010, with the opening and dedication ceremony on March 2, 2011, which was both Hackerman's 99th Birthday and the 175th Anniversary of Texas Independence.

The main building at the J. Erik Jonsson Center of the National Academy of Sciences is Hackerman House, named in his honor.

Hackerman House overlooks Quissett Harbor in Woods Hole MA, on Cape Cod.