Zagorka Pavlović was born in Vrbovljani by Nova Gradiška in 1942. She went to high school in Nova Gradiška and took a BA in history from the Faculty of Philosophy in Zagreb. She first worked in the A. M. Relković Adult Education (Workers’ University) College.
From 1990 she worked in the Nova Gradiška Municipal Museum, the foundation of which is connected with the Strmac Art Colony (1979), held every year at first, later every other year. A building once belonging to the JNA was assigned to the Museum, with the condition that a history collection of WWII be founded. From 1981, with historical material and gallery, the Museum extended its work with an ethnography and archaeology collection. As manager of the History Collection on the front line of the war during the Homeland War, she collected and looked after the museum material. In 1993, thanks to her efforts, the museum received a large donation, the pharmaceutical collection of the local pharmacist Karlo Djenješ, which derived from the time of the Military Frontier. As well as pharmacy related items, it contained a collection of postcards, posters, some maps, altogether 4,000 items, along with the original furnishings of the pharmacy. Pavlović recorded and put into an inventory book this valuable donation, important for the history of the city. She also worked out the preliminary concept for the new display of the Museum and was author several catalogues accompanying important exhibitions: From the Cernik Cultural Heritage, 1993 (coauthor); Catalogue of 80 years of Nova Gradiška High School, 1999; 130 Years of the Voluntary Fire Association of Nova Gradiška, 2001; 100 Years of Cycling in Nova Gradiška; Ivo Ivec Kramarić - Municipal Head, 1999.
Zagorka Pavlović retired in 2002.

NB. Data taken from the questionnaire, material taken from the Personnel Archives of the MDC, and from an interview recorded on July 10, 2003.