Xanthus Smith (1839-1929) was a prolific artist who worked in a variety of media. His American Civil War paintings and drawings are his most notable body of work. As a captain's clerk aboard the USS Wabash he participated in Union naval activities at Port Royal, South Carolina in 1862-63. His meticulous documentation of warships, encampments and naval engagements complements his other aesthetic acomplishments to make him one of the most renowned Civil War artists. Smith died in Philadelphia in 1929.

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