Smith did not actually participate in most of the battles he illustrated; instead, he generally consulted those who were present at the engagements.
 His first major work, The Monitor and the Merrimack — 1869, oil on canvas, 30 x 66 inches (76.2 x 167.6 cm.),
Union League of Philadelphia — was critically acclaimed.
His paintings were sometimes massive: Final Assault upon Fort Fisher, North Carolina — 1872–73, oil on canvas, 56 x 123-1/2 inches (142.2 x 313.7 cm.),
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts — is more than 10 feet wide.

There are seven known versions of the famous June 19, 1864 naval battle between the USS Kearsarge and the Confederate ship Alabama, each a unique composition:
Sinking of the Rebel Cruiser Alabama by the U.S.S. Kearsage, 1868, oil on canvas, 10 x 18 inches (25.4 x 45.7 cm.),
Collection of the Art Fund, Inc. at the Birmingham Museum of Art; Gift of Regions Bank
The Sinking of the Alabama, c. 1865–70, oil on canvas, 8.2 x 14.7 inches (20.8 x 37.3 cm.),
private collection.

Battle between Kearsarge and Alabama, c. 1870, oil on canvas, 9-5/8 x 14-7/8 inches (24.4 x 37.8 cm.),
Mariners' Museum, Newport News, Virginia.

The Kearsarge and Alabama, 1875, oil on canvas, 56-1/2 x 96 inches (143.5 x 243.8 cm.),
Union League of Philadelphia.
A popular attraction at the 1876 Centennial Exposition.

The Close of the Engagement, 1886, oil on canvas, 21 x 36 inches (53.3 x 91.4 cm.),
Debra Force Fine Art, Inc., New York City.

Battle of the Kearsarge and Alabama, 1892, watercolor on paper, 19-3/4 x 29-3/4 inches (50.2 x 75.6 cm.),
Morris Museum of Art, Augusta, Georgia.

The Sinking of the CSS Alabama, 1922, oil on canvas, dimensions unknown, Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum, Hyde Park, New York.
Commissioned by former Assistant Secretary of the Navy Franklin D. Roosevelt .

Smith's paintings and sketches were used to illustrate a large number of Civil War histories, including the 1926 biography he wrote of his former commanding officer, Admiral Samuel Francis du Pont.
Examples of his work are at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, and the U.S. Naval Historical Center in Washington, D.C. Others are in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, the Columbus Museum of Art, the Delaware Art Museum, the Columbia Museum of Art, and the Addison Gallery of American Art.
His unpublished autobiography, An Unvarnished Tale, along with his family papers are preserved in the Archives of American Art at the Smithsonian Institution.
Smith did not actually participate in most of the battles he illustrated; instead, he generally consulted those who were present at the engagements.  His first major work, The Monitor and the Merrimack — 1869, oil on canvas, 30 x 66 inches (76.2 x 167.6 cm.), Union League of Philadelphia — was critically acclaimed. His paintings were sometimes massive: Final Assault upon Fort Fisher, North Carolina — 1872–73, oil on canvas, 56 x 123-1/2 inches (142.2 x 313.7 cm.), Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts — is more than 10 feet wide.
There are seven known versions of the famous June 19, 1864 naval battle between the USS Kearsarge and the Confederate ship Alabama, each a unique composition:
Sinking of the Rebel Cruiser Alabama by the U.S.S. Kearsage, 1868, oil on canvas, 10 x 18 inches (25.4 x 45.7 cm.), Collection of the Art Fund, Inc. at the Birmingham Museum of Art; Gift of Regions Bank
The Sinking of the Alabama, c. 1865–70, oil on canvas, 8.2 x 14.7 inches (20.8 x 37.3 cm.), private collection.
Battle between Kearsarge and Alabama, c. 1870, oil on canvas, 9-5/8 x 14-7/8 inches (24.4 x 37.8 cm.), Mariners' Museum, Newport News, Virginia.
The Kearsarge and Alabama, 1875, oil on canvas, 56-1/2 x 96 inches (143.5 x 243.8 cm.), Union League of Philadelphia. A popular attraction at the 1876 Centennial Exposition.
The Close of the Engagement, 1886, oil on canvas, 21 x 36 inches (53.3 x 91.4 cm.), Debra Force Fine Art, Inc., New York City.
Battle of the Kearsarge and Alabama, 1892, watercolor on paper, 19-3/4 x 29-3/4 inches (50.2 x 75.6 cm.), Morris Museum of Art, Augusta, Georgia.
The Sinking of the CSS Alabama, 1922, oil on canvas, dimensions unknown, Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum, Hyde Park, New York. Commissioned by former Assistant Secretary of the Navy Franklin D. Roosevelt .
Smith's paintings and sketches were used to illustrate a large number of Civil War histories, including the 1926 biography he wrote of his former commanding officer, Admiral Samuel Francis du Pont. Examples of his work are at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, and the U.S. Naval Historical Center in Washington, D.C. Others are in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, the Columbus Museum of Art, the Delaware Art Museum, the Columbia Museum of Art, and the Addison Gallery of American Art. His unpublished autobiography, An Unvarnished Tale, along with his family papers are preserved in the Archives of American Art at the Smithsonian Institution.
Xanthus Russell Smith