Were there other holy figures in Shirdi before Sai Baba's return with Chand Patil's wedding party?

Yes, according to the account in Chapter 5, Shirdi was already home to other saints before Sai Baba's prominent return. The text explicitly mentions that a saint named Devidas had already made Shirdi his home prior to this period. Furthermore, the chapter notes that another holy man, Janakidas Gosavi, also came to live in Shirdi later on. This information indicates that the village had a spiritual atmosphere and was a place of residence for holy men even before Sai Baba's arrival with the wedding party made it his permanent abode.