I have been reminded by The Tolkien Professor that features of the landscape of Middle-earth can be characters.

In addition to river-door, river-shore, river-toll, river-valley, and riverside, let’s keep our eye on the simple rivers of Bilbo’s home and adventure. The word “river” apparently descends from the word for the land beside the flowing water thing.

• 1.002 sloping down to the river.
• 1.004 the small river that ran at the foot of The Hill.
• 1.116 up along the River Running,’
• 1.116 The river runs right out of it
• 1.122 up the Running River as far as the valley
• 1.123 The river rushed up
• 2.030 for it began to get dark as they went down into a deep valley with a river at the bottom.
• 2.030 for the river,
• 2.035 He got into the river before they could catch him;
• 2.117 not far from the track by the river,
• 3.001 One morning they forded a river
• 3.014 The river is flowing!
• 3.026 and so at last to the very brink of the river.
• 3.040 and the burned banks of the bright River Running.
• 5.011 and not an underground river,
• 5.036 in a bank by a river,
• 5.045 and sitting under the river bank teaching his grandmother,
• 7.005 and a river running through it all.
• 7.010 and a well worn path with many steps leading down it to the river,
• 7.014 in the river,
• 7.117 except from the west over the river,
• 7.117 There they disappeared into the river,
• 7.117 where the river was wide
• 7.122 He had been over the river
• 7.130 that joined the great river miles south of the Carrock.
• 7.130 to the borders of the Great River,
• 7.131 will not dare to cross the Great River
• 7.131 they will cross the river to the south
• 7.132 and in the distance the line of the river with its trees drawing ever closer.
• 8.132 a river ran out of the heights of the forest
• 9.003 that led across the river
• 9.018 and joined the Forest River some way further to the east,
• 9.018 right to the bed of the river to prevent anyone coming
• 9.019 and other goods came up the rivers,
• 9.019 From Lake-town the barrels were brought up the Forest River.
• 9.020 to a place far down the river where the bank jutted out,
• 9.020 where the Forest River flowed into the Long Lake.
• 9.048 is pushed into the river for the Lake-men to feast on for nothing!’
• 9.061 The dark river opened suddenly wide,
• 9.061 and there it was joined to the main water of the Forest River
• 9.061 Then the hurrying water of the Forest River
• 9.064 and there was a merry racket down by the river.
• 10.001 After a while the river rounded a steep shoulder of land
• 10.002 filled with the waters of the river which broke up
• 10.003 and the growth of the traffic on the river,
• 10.003 about the upkeep of the Forest River
• 10.003 only the river offered any longer a safe way
• 10.003 and the river was guarded by the Wood-elves’ king.
• 10.005 All he knew was that the river seemed to go on
• 10.005 the river took a more southerly course
• 10.005 the river gathered all its wandering waters together
• 10.006 the Running River came down
• 10.006 and with the Forest River
• 10.007 Not far from the mouth of the Forest River
• 10.007 protected from the swirl of the entering river
• 10.007 that came up the great river from the South
• 10.008 in rivers,
• 10.009 out of the current of the Forest River
• 10.035 And the rivers golden run.
• 10.038 coming down the river to Lake-town.
• 10.040 up the Forest River with their cargoes,
• 11.001 and passed out into the River Running,
• 11.001 some miles up the river,
• 11.002 making off swiftly down the river
• 11.003 slanting away from the River Running,
• 11.006 There the river,
• 11.008 They did not dare to follow the river
• 11.008 Out of it the waters of the Running River sprang;
• 11.013 where the Gates of the river stood,
• 11.016 as they had brought with them from the river.
• 12.030 back to the river with Smaug on the watch!’
• 12.032 that men had come up from the river and the lake
• 12.039 to go back to the store by the river
• 12.104 towards the Running River.
• 13.047 There is the birth of the Running River,’
• 13.055 The river loops suddenly east
• 13.064 on the left side of the river,
• 13.065 and left the river,
• 14.002 the Running River came down from the North.
• 14.008 his rivers golden run!
• 14.008 The river is running gold from the Mountain!’
• 14.018 down the Running River from the ruin long ago.
• 14.033 What sort of gold have they sent down the river to reward us?
• 14.039 up the river to the Forest
• 14.042 he hastened now down the river to the Long Lake.
• 15.027 of the Running River,
• 15.030 under the cover of dusk along both banks of the river.’
• 15.033 That day the camp was moved to the east of the river,
• 15.044 was seen crossing the river,
• 16.002 is worth more than a river of gold
• 16.037 He values it above a river of gold.
• 17.032 They halted between the river
• 17.032 and crossing the river drew near the camp;
• 17.033 and the loop of the river;
• 17.052 back down the river to escape from the trap;
• 18.024 They drove many of them into the Running River,
• 18.024 they hunted into the marshes about the Forest River;
• 18.043 to the north of the place where the Forest River ran out.
• 19.004 The river is flowing,
• 19.012 The river is silver, the shadows are fleeting;
• 19.023 They came to the river that marked the very edge
• 19.024 in the river,
• 19.034 and passed the mill by the river
• 19.043 and down the Running River;
• 19.045 in his day the rivers run with gold.’