One of the goals on the Mossback Base Ball Club is to help promote local history and one of the ways to do that was to choose a locally historic significant name, hence Mossback.

So what is a Mossback?

The term Mossback was given to the homesteaders of Charlevoix and Emmet counties, in the beginning years of white settlement. These homesteaders were called Mossbacks, because their first temporary homes were dugouts, built into a hillside and to repel rain, they covered the roof dirt with moss.

The name Mossback almost played a huge role in the history of Petoskey High School. Before Fred Lovelace, a sports writer for the local newspaper coined the term "Northmen" as the school’s nick name the school board was considering using the name "Mossbacks". Can you imagine going to Curtis Field or the Central School Gym and rooting on the "Fighting Mossbacks!"