Claude DeBruhl

Claude DeBruhl (January 15, 1915 – September 4, 1982) was an American politician. He served five terms as a Democratic member of the North Carolina House of Representatives for both Buncombe County and Transylvania County. He was also an insurance broker, publisher, and real estate developer.

Early life DeBruhl was born in Madison County, North Carolina but spent most of his life in Buncombe County. The latter led to a scandal when it was discovered that DeBruhl, who was president and chairman of the board of First Step, was renting land to the center for $600 a month ($ in 2022 money); a local appraiser evaluated the property at $237 a month. The next year, DeBruhl was unsuccessful in his bit for reelection. In 1978, DeBruhl was appointed to the North Carolina Council for the Hearing Impaired. Governor Carl J. Stewart Jr. appointed him to the Legislative Study Commission on Alternatives for Water Management in 1979.

He was president of Allied Publishers, Inc. and was the founder and owner of Claude DeBruhl Agency and Allied Publishers.

In 2006, the North Carolina Board of Transportation dedicated the Claude DeBruhl Memorial Bridge at the intersection of Elk Mountain Road and U.S. 19/23 in Woodfin.

Personal life DeBruhl married Revonda Miller on April 13, 1940. He was buried in the Oak Ridge Baptist Church cemetery in Jupiter, North Carolina.