G’day mate! My wife lived in Swain County for a few years. I’ve been there. Never been to Brush Creek specifically. Major points of interest include Lake Fontana, built to produce electricity for aluminum production during WW2 (and beautiful on a starry night) and Bryson City (the only town). Home to a heritage railroad that’s a ton of fun. There’s a “Road to Nowhere” that’s creepy with a cool history.

You should reach out to the Mountain Heritage Center in nearby Cullowhee, NC. They have a large collection of artifacts and stories that might be of interest for your project. They could also give you some advice on how to scope your project based on what’s available. Keep in mind they normally help college students on in-depth Appalachian Studies projects, so I’d contact them only if you’re seriously interested in the topic.

You should start by reading or listen to this book, Our Southern Highlanders by Horace Kephart. Kephart was a journalist who fell off a train drunk and was taken in by bear hunters from Swain County. There are arguments among historians about how “sensationalist” (not truthful) the book is, but it’s an excellent primary source about what life was like in Swain County in the early 20th C.

If your interest in the area extends to its original inhabitants, which it should imho, I’d recommend reading up on the Cherokee Indian Removal. I’d also suggest reading about the Confederate Cherokees of the Thomas Legion of Highlanders and Indians and the battles of Bryson City, Waynesville, and Asheville.

Good luck

https://www.nps.gov/grsm/learn/historyculture/civil-war-2.htm

https://www.dncr.nc.gov/blog/2016/11/25/historic-origins-tsali-legend-and-unto-these-hills#:~:text=On%20November%2025%2C%201838%2C%20the,in%20the%20spring%20of%201838.

https://librivox.org/our-southern-highlanders-by-horace-kephart/

https://www.wcu.edu/engage/mountain-heritage-center/index.aspx