It was built between 1961 and 1963, as a regional shopping center to serve the Bladensburg and Landover area of suburban Washington, D.C.[3] The mall was a major attraction in Prince George's County, until its slow decline that began in the 1970s.

During the late 1980s, an Auntie Anne's Pretzel Shop and Cinnabon Store also opened inside Capital Plaza, next to the movie theater.

Capital Plaza's prime location along Maryland Route 450 and the Baltimore-Washington Parkway made it ideal for shoppers by both automobile and public transit.

Local bus service to Capital Plaza operated along Annapolis Road, linking the plaza with shoppers from the nearby neighborhoods of College Park, Hyattsville, Riverdale, Rogers Heights, Edmonston, Bladensburg, Colmar Manor, Cottage City, Brentwood, Mount Rainier, Villa Heights, Cheverly, Landover Hills, Landover, New Carrollton, Lanham, Glenarden, and even certain pockets of Washington, D.C. (provided by the old WMA Transit Company, until later becoming the Metrobus system).

Neighboring shopping featured Robert Hall Men's and Kinney Shoes, Shakey's Pizza, and a Grand Union Market along Annapolis Road.

[6][7] Between 1999 and 2000, the parent companies for the mall's two anchor stores, Hechinger and Montgomery Ward, both filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.