Long before Portland became the foodie, artsy destination it is today, the city had Spring Street Gym — a gay bar–meets–bathhouse hybrid running through the 1970s and 1990s, where sweaty workouts and even sweatier nightlife blurred into one gloriously unapologetic queer space. With its maze-like layout, dim corners, and unmistakable vibe, Spring Street Gym offered gay men in Maine something rare for the era: a place to meet, flirt, explore, and breathe without looking over their shoulders.
Part cruising spot, part social club, part “you had to know someone to find it,” the Gym became one of Portland’s most formative LGBTQ hangouts. It was raw, it was intimate, and it was the kind of space that created community in the shadows long before Pride flags flew openly along Congress Street.
