From The Connecticut River Valley in Southern Vermont and New Hampshire: Historical Sketches by Lyman S. Hayes, Tuttle Co., Marble City Press, Rutland, VT., 1929, page 184:
A MAN WHO HAD 386 DIRECT DESCENDANTS LIVING WHEN HE DIED–JOSIAH WHITE
A tombstone in the old burying ground at Rockinggham, a few feet from the northwest corner of the Old Meeting-house, bears a unique epitaph, the record contained being probably unequalled by any family in New England, if not in the United States. It shows a line of achievement of one of the very earliest settlers in the town, but it was not all he accomplished in life by any means.
The epitaph reads as follows:
Mr. White was born at Lancaster, Mass., January 3, 1714, and he built the first mill in that part of Lancaster, which was later set off to Leominster. He later lived for a time at Charlestown, N. H., and probably removed to Rockingham about 1773, as he in that year purchased real estate in town and took the oath of allegiance to the new government in 1777. He was of the little band from Rockingham that marched to Manchester the same year. His name frequently appears upon the town records as taking an active part in public matters of his time. His home farm was in the north part of the town, the same recently owned and occupied by Chester B. Hadwin. A part of the original house is now used as [185] a corn barn in the rear of the brick building that was erected by Mr. White's son, Phineus.
Mr. White enjoys the distinction of being probably the progenitor of a greater number of people than any other man resident here during the history of this town, and an excellent genealogy of the "descendants of John White 1638-1900," written by the late Miss Myra L. White of Haverhill, Mass., records his descendants to the number of 2,663 up to about 25 years ago. The number must have materially increased since. Her compilation of the descendants of the emigrant John, three generations further back, showed the unusually prolific qualities of the family to a grand total of 19,629 up to that date, and there has since been a third volume added.
Mr. White was prominent in the First Church of Rockingham and one of his descendants a few years ago placed a beautiful tablet on the square "pigpen" pew which was occupied many years by him and members of his family.