[2] The town's name is derived from the adjacent "White Lake," called Bile ozero (Біле озеро) in Ukrainian.

Described as a "fishing-and-farming community," its residents are primarily engaged in agriculture, cattle husbandry, and the cultivation of seeds, gardens, and vineyards.

[citation needed] Archeological excavations in the 19th century discovered Scythian and Sarmatian burial mounds along with artifacts from the Copper and Bronze Ages.

[4] During the Russian Civil War, a Soviet revolutionary committee was established in Bilozerka in January 1918, but in April 1918, it was occupied by Central Powers troops during Operation Faustschlag.

Starting in January 1919, it was occupied by the Allied Powers during the Southern Russia intervention, until March, when it was captured by the Bolsheviks's Red Army.

Rosgvardiya troops and FSB and OMON agents took up positions within the town, and Donbass militiamen and "Asian and Caucasian minorities" were also present among the Russian forces in Bilozerka.

[3][10] A Victory Day was parade was celebrated in Bilozerka by Russian troops and some civilians alike, but by the summer, relations between the garrison and the locals had taken a turn for the worse, with home raids, interrogations, and beatings increasing in frequency.

People allegedly involved in pro-Ukrainian resistance activities were detained and tortured in ad hoc jails in the basements of a school and the courthouse.