In the summer of 1831, Nathaniel Ladd and his wife arrived from Utica, New York, and lived for as short time in the Smith cabin with Tupper and Preston. The same year came Col. James W. Cronk and family; Mr. Cronk died while serving in the Mexican War in 1847. Mr. Ladd and his family remained until 1832, when they removed to Grand Blanc. Lyman Stow, to whom Mr. Ladd sold his property on the Flint river, was the first blacksmith on the site of Flint, and had his shop just across the street from the Citizen office. In 1832 George Oliver, an Englishman, joined the little settlement; also Elijah N. Davenport, who occupied a small log cabin which stood near the site of the later Hamilton's mill, and who soon afterwards moved to Bay City, where he died. He was one of the first highway commissioners in the old town of Grand Blanc, in 1833. He kept a tavern at the Grand Traverse in 1834. Another settler of 1832 was James McCormick, but he moved away in 1835.

Neighboring parts of the county were slowly receiving settlers by 1833. In that year Asa Farrar had made his appearance in what is now Atlas. Benjamin Pearson and Addison Stewart had built their cabins near the north line of the present township of Flint. In that year, too, came Lewis Buckingham, later the first sheriff of the county. With him came several associates from western New York who formed a settlement on the line between the present township of Mount Morris and Genesee. By reason of their opposition to the use of intoxicating liquors their place was by a few derisively called "The Cold Water Settlement."