Then & now: Balinese Room goes for sale in 1990 This Forgotten Day in Houston

In 1942, the infamous Balinese Room first opened on a pier jutting out from the Galveston Seawall. See photos of this historic building from the 1950s to its eventual demise in 2008. In 1942, the infamous Balinese Room first opened on a pier jutting out from the Galveston Seawall. See photos of this historic building from the 1950s to its eventual demise in 2008. Image 1 of / 60 Caption Close Then & now: Balinese Room goes for sale in 1990 1 / 60 Back to Gallery

April 27, 1990: On this day, the historic Balinese Room on Galveston's Seawall Boulevard was for sale for a cool $900,000. The front door of the club originally opened in 1942, and through that front door, patrons walked the length of the long pier to the main room at the end, the Gulf of Mexico below.

The Balinese Room was, like many other clubs in Galveston at the time, a place to gamble illegally, but the "B-Room" was able to fend off numerous stings by Texas Rangers. Because the Rangers had to walk the long pier, their arrival was tipped off well in advance, giving players plenty of time to hide their chips and workers plenty of time to drop cloths over the tables.

But, in 1957, an undercover operation finally shut down the Balinese Room, changing the Galveston scene forever. In 2001, Scott Arnold purchased the property, reopening a piece of history, but seven years later, Hurricane Ike obliterated the nightclub. Arnold has talked about re-opening a similar version of the Balinese Room further inland, but to this day, no serious plans are in the works.

Did you go to the Balinese Room before it was destroyed by Hurricane Ike? Let us know in the comments below, or tweet our host, Michael Callahan, @MCallahanTV using #ForgottenDayHOU, and he'll tweet you back.