  We use the star formation history map of the Large Magellanic Cloud to study
the sites of the eight smallest (and presumably youngest) supernova remnants in
the Cloud: SN 1987A, N158A, N49, and N63A (core collapse remnants), 0509-67.5,
0519-69.0, N103B, and DEM L71 (Type Ia remnants). The local star formation
histories provide unique insights into the nature of the supernova progenitors,
which we compare with the properties of the supernova explosions derived from
the remnants themselves and from supernova light echoes. We find that all the
core collapse supernovae that we have studied are associated with vigorous star
formation in the recent past. Stars more massive than 21.5Msun are very scarce
around SNR N49, implying that the magnetar SGR 0526-66 in this SNR was either
formed elsewhere or came from a progenitor with a mass well below the 30Msun
threshold suggested in the literature. Three of our four Ia SNRs are associated
with old, metal poor stellar populations. This includes SNR 0509-67.5, which is
known to have been originated by an extremely bright Type Ia event, and yet is
located very far away from any sites of recent star formation, in a population
with a mean age of 7.9 Gyr. The Type Ia SNR N103B, on the other hand, is
associated with recent star formation, and might have had a relatively younger
and more massive progenitor with substantial mass loss before the explosion. We
discuss these results in the context of our present understanding of core
collapse and Type Ia supernova progenitors.
