Stroh Brewery Company was the biggest and best known of Detroit's many breweries. German immigrant Bernhard Stroh established the firm in 1850, brewing a Bohemian-style pilsner. The company survived Prohibition -- in part by manufacturing ice cream -- and in the 1980s became the third-largest brewer in the United States. Weakened by overexpansion and competition, Stroh sold its brands in 1999.