Bilovodsk

Bilovodsk lies beside the Derkul, east of the Aidar in the Siverskyi Donets basin. Springs emerging from chalk give the river water a pale colour associated with the settlement's name, meaning White Waters. Founded in 1686, it attracted Cossacks and fugitives from serfdom to the frontier. Its inhabitants took part in the Bulavin rebellion, and in 1708 a punitive expedition sent by the tsar burned the settlement.