[alaskayorkie]

I think the "best" is Photoshop, but it can be pricy. You could easily remove writing and scratches. The only problem with photoshop is takes a lot of studying and practice to learn everything it can do. The good news is you can pick up just a few things quickly to retouch old photos.

There may be some more reasonably priced software out there that does what you need to do. I know some people have mentioned Photoshop Elements before. It's a more affordable version of photoshop. Not sure if that would do everything you need to do, but I'd guess it would.