Granville Perkins, an illustrator as well as a painter in watercolor and oil, was born on October 16, 1830 in Baltimore, Maryland. He first studied painting formally with the marine and landscape painter James Hamilton (1819-1898) at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia. Perkins started exhibiting his work at the Academy around the same time. In 1856, he exhibited his first painting, "Cape Croix, Cuba."

In 1860, Perkins traveled to New York to work as an illustrator for Harper & Brothers in Franklin Square. While working at Harper & Brothers, he continued his artistic studies and was invited to exhibit at the National Academy of Design; he was a frequent exhibitor there between 1862 and 1883. During this period Perkins also worked as an illustrator for a number of periodicals including Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, Appleton’s Journal, and Harper’s Weekly.

As an accomplished watercolorist, Perkins became a member of the New York Watercolor Society. He exhibited his watercolors at the National Academy of Design and at the Chicago Art Institute in 1889 and 1894.