Stu Hart (Stewart Edward Hart OC) was born in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. His parents were Edward and Elizabeth Stewart Hart. He was mainly of Scots-Irish descent from his father's side but also had Scottish and English ancestry from his mother.

Stu Hart (Stewart Edward Hart OC) died of a stroke at the age 88 of in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. His funeral service was attended by approximately 1,000 people. He was cremated and his ashes were later interred at Eden Brook Memorial Gardens in a plot with his wife Helen, who had died almost two years earlier.