Mount Judah, a prominent Sierra Nevada peak near Donner Pass, stands at the center of a landscape shaped by western travel, railroad building, and heavy alpine snowfall. Named for engineer Theodore Judah in 1940, it honors his role in promoting Donner Pass as the route for the First Transcontinental Railroad, which later crossed the area through Tunnel No. 41 beneath the mountain. The nearby pass had earlier carried emigrants on the California Trail, including the Donner Party in 1846. Today, with drainage divided between the South Yuba and Truckee rivers, Mount Judah remains a landmark, hiking destination, and part of one of the snowiest regions in the contiguous United States.