See Sandusky from St. Mary's church's bell tower

SANDUSKY — Exploring his historic church was an adventure for Jordan Sternberg.The view of Sandusky from St. Mary's Catholic Church's bell tower earlier this spring shows downtown Sandusky buildings, including Erie County Common Pleas Court. Earlier this spring, the Sandusky resident, who is a member of St. Mary's Catholic Church, climbed to the church's bell tower and took photos from that vantage point.Sandusky Central Catholic School and city neighborhoods can be seen from St. Mary's Catholic Church's bell tower earlier this spring. "It was pretty breathtaking," Sternberg said. "You don't get to see Sandusky from that point of view. To see the architecture that they used back when it was built and hear the stories of how they got the bell up there is pretty interesting."St. Mary's Catholic Church music director Timothy Claubaugh stands inside the bell tower of the church earlier this spring. St. Mary's Catholic Church was constructed in 1873 and is Sandusky's largest Catholic church at 76 feet wide by 184 feet long with the spire standing 200 feet high. When designs of the current church building were planned in the 1870s, architect Francis George Himpler said he was inspired by the "first pure Gothic "ecclesiastical structure" in Germany, located in Marburg, the parish's website states.The view from St. Mary's Catholic Church's bell tower shows downtown Sandusky buildings like Erie County Commons Pleas Court and Cedar Point in the distance. Reach reporter Caitlin Nearhood at nearhood@sanduskyregister.com, follow her on Twitter @CaitlinNearhood and on Facebook.com/CaitliNearhood