  Beyond its goals related to the extragalactic universe, the Sloan Digital Sky
Survey (SDSS) is an effective tool for identifying stellar objects with unusual
spectral energy distributions. Here we report on the 53 new magnetic white
dwarfs discovered during the first two years of the survey, including 38 whose
data are made public in the 1500 square-degree First Data Release. Discoveries
span the magnitude range 16.3 < 20.5, and based on the recovery rate for
previously-known magnetic white dwarfs, the completeness of the SDSS appears to
be high for reasonably hot stars with B > 3 MG and g > 15. The new objects
nearly double the total number of known magnetic white dwarfs, and include
examples with polar field strengths B > 500 MG as well as several with exotic
atmospheric compositions. The improved sample statistics and uniformity
indicate that the distribution of magnetic white dwarfs has a broad peak in the
range ~5-30 MG and a tail extending to nearly 10^9 G. Degenerates with polar
fields B > 50 MG are consistent with being descendents of magnetic Ap/Bp
main-sequence stars, but low- and moderate-field magnetic white dwarfs appear
to imply another origin. Yet-undetected magnetic F-type stars with convective
envelopes that destroy the ordered underlying field are attractive candidates.
