The Underground Nightclub located on Spring Street in Portland was a safe place for LGBTQ+ people to socialize starting in the 1980s—the decade when Charlie Howard, a gay man living in Bangor, was thrown off a bridge and killed by three teens.

The Underground later became Styxx, a popular dance club. Styxx closed in 2016, in part due to dating apps, but also changing attitudes that made the city’s nightlife more welcoming and comfortable to LGBTQ+ people.