George R. Stewart Peak is located one-half mile northeast of Donner Pass, on land managed by Tahoe National Forest.

It is situated in the Sierra Nevada mountain range, with precipitation runoff from the peak draining to Donner Lake.

This landform's toponym was officially adopted in October 1984 by the U.S. Board on Geographic Names to posthumously honor George R. Stewart (1895–1980), an American historian, toponymist, professor of English at the University of California, Berkeley for 56 years, and novelist who authored numerous books including a classic study of the ill-fated Donner Party.

[9] Most weather fronts originate in the Pacific Ocean and travel east toward the Sierra Nevada mountains.

As fronts approach, they are forced upward by the peaks (orographic lift), causing them to drop their moisture in the form of rain or snowfall onto the range.