It is believed that due to the profound respect the Choctaw had for their ancestors, they carried with them the bones of their dead, sewn and laced in bags made from animal skins on journeys prior to settling at the Mother Mound.  Of course, this meant that if one of the tribe died during travel, his or her relatives had to add to the burden.  The body was prepared in such a way that the flesh would be picked off,; the bones scorched and then cleaned with fingernails by "Bonepickers".  Some families were so burdened with the bones of their ancestors that they would have to make several trips back and forth along the trail; not surprisingly, this aspect of Choctaw life features prominently as a factor which influenced the tribe to settle down at Nunih Waya

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