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Since no one else has referred to The History of the Hobbit yet, I will mention a few aspects of the book's early stages. The most significant difference is that of nomenclature. The dragon was named "Pryftan", the wizard "Bladorthin", and the chief of the dwarves was - Gandalf! The other dwarf names were as we know them, though bits of dialogue were switched. The goblin king who was killed by Bullroarer Took (simultaneously inventing the game of golf) was Fingolfin!
Another fascinating aspect is that of magic. I discovered this when researching the dwarven instruments for my book on music. In the early version, Bombur produces a drum from nowhere and Bifur and Bofur turn their walking sticks into clarinets. Why do you think Tolkien removed all references to dwarven magic?
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'Mercy!' cried Gandalf. 'If the giving of information is to be the cure of your inquisitiveness, I shall spend all the rest of my days in answering you. What more do you want to know?' 'The whole history of Middle-earth.. .'
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