Was born in London, England and educated in London by private tutors. He studied under Professor Beresford Pite and JB Fulton, attended the School of Building at Brixton in London and was articled to William Lockwood, FRIBA, MRSI in London. He worked in various London offices before coming to Cape Town in 1922 or 1924. He set up practice on his own account in Cape Town before entering into partnership between 1942 and 1944 with FK KENDALL, having worked in association with Kendall on St George's Grammar School in the 1930s. The partnership lasted until Kendall's death in 1948, after which Earle continued the practice under the same style until 1969. An important architectural archive, the Kendall & Earle Gift, containing many designs relating to the work of Kendall, Baker, Masey and others and covering about sixty years' activity was donated by the firm to the University of Cape Town Libraries.

Earle had many interests; he was a member of the Guild of Cape Town Architects, the Heraldry Society of South Africa, the South African Association of Arts, the South African Genealogical Society, the South African National Society, the Seven Arts Club and the Simon van der Stel Foundation. He was made a life member of the Institute of South African Architects in 1964 and died in Cape Town where his address was latterly Waterside, Peninsula Road at Zeekoevlei, Cape Town.

(Baker, Kendall & Earle Gift BC 206 (see index to Gift); Johnson 1987; Master of Supreme Court, Deceased Estates (CT) 1082/71) Publ: Franklin Kaye Kendall, DSAB IV:272

All truncated references not cited and linked below are those of Joanna Walker's original text and cited in full in the 'Bibliography' entry of the Lexicon.