The small village of Hamtramck grew from 3,500 people into a city of 56,000 people by 1930 with the Dodge Main assembly plant opening in 1914. A center for auto dealerships this stretch of road became known as "Automobile Row" because of the dozen auto dealerships and other auto businesses along the street. 

From 1825 to the 1960s, farming was the main vocation in Canton. The soil was a natural draw to the region's settlers and by the 1920s, the auto industry gave farmers access to the Detroit markets. 

As the economic and social center for the area, local families came to Cherry Hill Village to trade goods, pick up mail, purchased clothing, attend school, church, picnics and many more community events. 

At the cemetery lay pioneer families of Canton who contributed to American history. These historic figures lived, fought, and sometimes died for the American ideal. 

In 1866, Abner Hitchcock built the Cherry Hill Inn when he thought that a railroad spur would come through Cherry Hill and travelers would need a place to stay. The railroad never came, and so the Inn was purchased by the Gunn family and turned into a thriving general store where the community gathered. 

On November 29, 2003 hundreds of citizens watched the lighting of the new Vehicle City arches along Saginaw Street. The arches are replicas of those arches that lined Flint's streets back in 1899 and helps to tie the past to the present within the city. 

Charles Kettering was the man who invented the automobile electric starter and lighting system that revolutionized the auto industry. He combined his electrical engineering education with rich work experience and in 1909 Kettering co-founded DELCO, where his inventions took off. 

Charles Stewart Mott's business called Weston-Mott Company, was located in New York and originally manufactured bicycle wheels but had switched to automobile wheels and axles. By 1904, Billy Durant had convinced Mott to bring his company to Flint and by 1913, Weston-Mott Company was bought by General Motors. 

With the city's close relationship with General Motors, Flint was one of the most thriving cities in the United States. The community took a hit when the Beecher Tornado devastated northeast Flint on June 8, 1953. With several deaths and homes destroyed, Flint turned toward General Motors, the United Auto Workers, and the GM employees to help with funding relief efforts. 

The Flint College and Cultural Center was established in the 1950s and includes Mott Community College, University of Michigan - Flint, a planetarium, two museums, an auditorium, a theater, the Institute of Music, and a food technology center. Several community leaders raised more than $30 million for the center.