[1] The August 1907 issue of Law Notes states that Earle was a "personal friend" of Abraham Lincoln, and "the oldest surviving delegate to the first Republican National Convention that nominated Fremont for the presidency.

[2] Earle became involved in the anti-slavery movement when he opposed the riot which resulted in the burning to the ground of Pennsylvania Hall in 1838.

[3] He was a delegate to the "Pennsylvania Anti-Slavery Society, Eastern District" around 1844,[3] and was admitted to the Philadelphia Bar on 27 January 1845.

[4] Earle "possessed an abhorrence for slavery [and] voluntarily gave his services to the cause of the fugitive slaves.

"[5] In April 1859 he was retained by local abolitionists to represent Daniel [Webster] Dangerfield, a case which gained nationwide attention because "it was one of the first judicial decisions dealing with the interpretation of the Fugitive Slave Law.